Into the Darkness: Book 1: A New Life
by TashaMoon
Summary: In the midst of World War II she has lived through many things, but this is a first; the end is just the beginning. There is a new war starting, one that threatens everything as we know it. The Fates seem to have a plan for everything, but this? Darkness is coming, you cannot choose your parents, but you can choose your legacy. You create your own path.
1. Chapter 1: The End

**AN (10/14/15): **Hello! Because the second book is being worked on, I felt it appropriate to fix up some of these earlier chapters. As a summary of my old original AN: This story I put as T Rating, mainly due to concepts within this piece. There is nothing sexual in this, in that aspect it is kid friendly, but concepts like ones surrounding death, mortality, and war are in here that I feel are not preferable for younger kids to read. I just wanted to put this in as a preliminary warning of sorts to any prospective readers. This book was, and the next book will be updated weekly once I feel it is adequate enough to be posted and I have a majority of the story completed.

I do ask for feedback though. It really helps me gain a sense of what I can improve on, what you guys liked, disliked about the book. I love to see feedback from you guys, it has been possibly the best part of posting this! If you have any questions or anything you would pm me for, please feel free to! I will try to respond as quickly as I can. If you want to leave a comment but not have it in the comment box, you can send my feedback through there too. I worked on this story for a long, long time, so I do hope you enjoy! _I know reading an AN at the beginning of a story is annoying, but if you stuck with me up to here, thank you! Enjoy readying and I look forward to seeing your feedback! -TashaMoon **\- Chapters are always 2k min. If they are not, I post two chapters within that week to make up for it - **_

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It is easy to forget what you stand for, especially when you are one of a few fighting for it. That is how I felt when I first grew up, and I say first for a reason, but you will learn why later. Even now I still feel as if I am the only one of a few who still fight for what is right for everyone, not just for personal gain. Imagine being forced to hide who you are from your family, your friends, for fear of being ostracized. That is what I had to do, I was only able to trust a few to know the truth.

I was born to Sandra Cooper and Hades, Greek god of the Underworld. I was born during times of unrest, then all out war. Whole nations going against each other, all sparked by the ones who I had the misfortune of sharing the same father with, and select others. The gods tend to influence many people, nations, etcetera. I was the only one of my siblings that I knew about who wasn't one for that life the others set course on. I refused to join them, to be driven to their special kind of madness. To help cause the deaths of millions.

The ones who lead the fight against them were the children of Zeus and Poseidon. They lead what was ultimately the winning side, though I never got to see that victory personally. After I was born and the war broke out, my father imagined me to be the one to help end it all. Help end the discrimination. I was the only child of his that wasn't going against Olympus. That is a lot for a kid to shoulder. I was about ten when I found out about our world and I have been encompassed by it ever since. My father may not have been greatly loved by the Olympians, or even cared for Olympus himself, but it was the better of the options available.

I grew up alongside a son of Zeus, we both did not know our heritage when we were small. He and I became the best of friends, forging our path into the chaotic world together. We managed to make it to Camp Half-Blood in one piece and get claimed, even if mine was hidden from the rest of camp. If the rest of camp knew, I would instantly become the center of negative attention just because I was a child of the Underworld at that period of time in the world. We were seen as instant enemies, to be hated and scorned on sight. I couldn't blame them though, what my half-siblings were doing was worthy of that reaction. Children of the Underworld were never very welcomed at camp to begin with, just like the parallel of my father and Olympus. During this war that was put to an extreme. We would often end up growing up on our own, fending for ourselves. That, or we would meet up with others like us and live day to day. Overall, it was a breeding ground for distrust and further dislike.

Only my closest friend knew my true heritage aside from Chiron- the son of Zeus. I had always hoped that we would somehow beat the odds and be able to live to an older age as we had never fit well into our allotted rolls as children of our fathers. Nick Evans was brave, just like any other demigod, but humble ever since he was little. Children of Zeus tended to get pompous about their heritage, he was only that in jest. I was not extremely glum or dark, for some words to describe the typical Hades kid persona. I was okay with dying though if it was for something or someone I cared for. I knew I would give my life to protect those I cared about. It was hard to gain my trust, but once you got it I would stick with you to the end.

All new beginnings start with an end, that is a given. For me the beginning of the end started the day we got wind at camp about an impending monster attack. It was downtime between trips to Europe for some of us, so we were back at camp. Now, Camp Half-Blood at that time had basic magical boundaries, but the more powerful monsters sometimes were able to slip through, or if the boundaries took too much of a beating, so we had to defend it. With the amount of demigods living at camp we were like a giant glowing beacon for all monsters from miles around. A buffet hotspot if you will.

The day before it all ended, Chiron assigned a collection of us to dispose of the monsters before they reached camp and put the younger campers in danger. We only knew about them because some campers had spotted them on their return trip from the city. This was the one sanctuary in the world for kids like us and we would be damned if we didn't put up a fight to defend it.

Now, to the actual fighting. First let me start out by saying I had two ways of fighting. To the public's eye I fought with a standard celestial bronze sword. Nothing special, just one that fit me the best. But when I didn't have to watch who could see me, I had a pair of secret weapons in the form of a silver and black bracelet, and a similar necklace.

On the outside they may look harmless, but once activated they were a black as night stygian iron knife and sword with silver hilts. My knife was a personal favorite of mine from all the weapons I have tried, but I could only use that and my sword in emergencies. They had been gifted to me by my father upon my claiming. The necklace was like a circular hollow pendant with a pegasus charm in the center and the words _Camp Half-Blood _engraved onto the face attached to a black cord. What was really amazing about it was that it was magic - aside from the whole jewelry into deadly weapons thing. My knife was able to return to its necklace form with just a flick of my wrist and both weapons, as I had found out last year, returned to me even if I didn't retrieve them after a certain amount of time.

To the whole of camp I was just another unclaimed kid living in the Hermes cabin, but I was more than met the eye.

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We departed that night into what was Long Island to take care of the monsters before they could get to us. It wasn't until the next morning that we made contact. It was really a stroke of luck we had about where we met them; it was a low valley. A crystal clear river cut through the earth at the bottom of the valley, and that was surrounded by hills, a forest, and rocks. In short, it was a very good location to have a fight. With the sound of the river to cover our movement and the breeze coming from where the monsters were, we attacked.

We split ourselves into three groups and forced them back into a rough triangle. Nick and I stuck close together once the assault started, determined to not lose sight of each other, the memory of our trip last year still burned into our heads. I worked my way through hellhounds, Cyclopes, and even a few gryphons that were flying around. I managed to only sustain minimal damage to myself; just a scratch, bump, or bruise here of there. During my fight with a hellhound I found myself looking to where one of our archers were perched in an oak tree, their last arrow buried in the gryphon that had been soaring at my head, then it exploded into dust with a squawk. Dark clouds were rolling in and a distant sound of thunder reached the valley.

Now, almost all of the campers that came along on this little trip had been out in the field before, but never all together. As a result, over time our plan to stay organized broke apart. Soon we found ourselves getting isolated. I found myself being pushed back into the nearest tree line when a big wave of thunder ran through the valley. I looked over to where Nick was fighting a dracaenae and a gryphon, but he didn't look to be the one summoning the storm. I glanced around between strikes for the other son of Zeus who had gone on this trip: Chester. But there was no sign of him.

Chester and I had never really gotten along too well, he was too snooty and full of himself for my taste, even if he had helped Nick and I get to camp once we hit the Island. He was always ranting about the war when he was back at camp, whether it be cursing out the enemy or boasting news from a recent trip of his into the warzone. He was a couple years older than me and Nick, eighteen to our fourteen, and always tried to take charge in any situation, whether it be for the good or bad. Recently he had been even more annoying than usual, going as far as to shoot me glares when he thought I wasn't looking.

I was already focused back on my fight when I smelled ozone and the hair on my arms stood on end. I had been in enough practice fights with Nick to know when to dive out of the way. I was sprayed with a shower of dirt and grass as lightning shredded where I had just been.

"Nick, watch where you aim those things!" I called out to his form that was flipping over a large scorpion, slightly annoyed at him for nearly frying me. I slashed at an incoming hellhound and heard it yelp in pain as my sword cut across its chest. Despite being a daughter of Hades, there had yet to be a hellhound that hadn't wanted to kill me.

"Not-Duck!" Nick yelled. I quickly ducked and rolled, trusting his warning without hesitation and a sword swung past where my head had been just a second prior. I bounced back up into a fighting stance and looked to see who nearly took my head off.

"Chester! What are you doing? Fight the monsters, not me! They're being overrun by the river, go help them!" I yelled as I saw him standing there, sword out and ready. He had this mad look in his electric eyes, his hair flicking around in the wind.

"Ah, but you see, you _are_ the monster here, Cooper. Did you really think nobody would notice?" He had a cruel and twisted smile on his face. I still find myself remembering that, the memory of how coldly he said that never to be forgotten. My face must have shown shock because his next sentence was one I had always dreaded: "I know who you are."

I quickly parried away a strike aimed at my shoulder and stumbled backwards, dodging the leaping hellhound as I went.

"Your kind are the reason so many people are dying! You are always aiding the enemy, causing destruction wherever you go. I am putting a stop to you spying on camp for them." His face was red, eyes unfocused. The hound I had been fighting with dove at him but he simply raised his sword, not even looking in its direction, killing it with one swift blow. He freed his sword and came at me.

We squared off and I tried to keep him at bay as best I could, dodging shots of electricity he aimed at me and parrying away his strikes. For some reason, even though his aim was clearly to kill, I just couldn't bring myself to that level. Not again. I had enough blood on my hands as it was, I didn't want to add more. He was Nick's brother after all, even if he was a jerk.

Between blows I managed to catch sight of Nick. He had finished off the scorpion and was busy dueling with a couple dracaenae, but I could tell he was trying to get over to where Chester and I were. I would have attempted to get help from the rest of the group that came that day, but they were all off fighting their own battles, some nearly holding off being overrun. I wasn't quite sure that they wouldn't turn against me if Chester told them the truth too. I only had Nick on my side here, but he was out of reach.

"How do you even stand yourself? Being a part of the ones causing mass death and suffering. But, it is all for a good cause, right? Strengthening your father's kingdom and all that. The more death the merrier! You and your kind will _never_ be welcome in the rest of the world, this war was the last straw. You will die alone, nobody missing you." He taunted as our battle went on, trying to distract me from the actual combat. I could feel my temper rising despite knowing he said that just to throw me off. Some of the shadows in the surrounding area started to flicker and come closer.

"I may be who I am, but that doesn't mean I can't strive to be better than them. I am _not_ one of them, get that through your thick skull! I am on your side in this, Chester. You can't choose your parentage, but you can choose your legacy, and I choose to make a better impact than them!"

He spat and pressed me harder, causing me to growl in frustration. It was like he was blinded in some way. All those times he had ranted about the war had gotten to him or something, it was like they had culminated and were amplified even further in some way. I was itching to take out my knife but I didn't want to cause anybody else to jump at me if I could help it. I always fought better duel-wielding my knife with a sword to be able to utilize both hands.

Chester managed to get a hit off me when I was trying to see where Nick was, causing a deep slash in my left arm. I hissed at the sudden spurt of pain. At this point I just wanted to be done with this whole mess. After all I had ever done for camp: going on missions, going out on my own to do the jobs too dangerous for others behind enemy lines, but I get this in return? All the things I had seen and done to help end this stupid war, and my best friend's brother was the one doing this too.

I kicked it up a notch, tossing aside trying not to harm him and aiming to knock him out or something; anything to stop this, I would figure out what to do from there. Chiron would know what to do, I just had to reach him. I went on the attack. Chester's eyes grew a bit wider as I pressed him - he was probably realizing that he might not win this fight as easy as he had hoped with me actually fighting back. Then I saw him get this sudden grin on his face, his eyes locking on something behind me. Like an idiot, I whirled around and saw a massive Cyclops bearing down on us. I swung my sword up to block a high strike at my head and he managed to kick me back, launching me toward the monster. His kick was charged too, electricity running through me as I was flung back. I nearly dropped my sword, my arms smoking.

I had already been getting tired from all of the fighting we had been doing and traveling through the night, but I had to keep going as the Cyclops zeroed in on me. I soon found myself dodging strikes from Chester while fending off the Cyclops, fingers occasionally twitching from the discharged electricity. Once, I managed to kick Chester away from me and I had to dodge a strike of lightning that landed to my side. I was not keen on getting shocked again.

"Just stop this already!" I yelled at him in anger. I felt a large tug as I struck my hand out in his direction. The ground cracked and opened up and wispy tendrils of shadows curling up, threatening to drag him in. He summoned the winds and lifted himself off the ground just in time, landing a few feet away. He had this deadly look in his eye, even more than before - like I had just pissed him off big time. The ground closed back up and the Cyclops nearly knocked me over. I didn't have time to think about Chester right then, the Cyclops took top priority.

"Get off me!" I suddenly heard Nick shout from somewhere behind me, deeper into the trees. I spun around to see a sight that made my blood run cold. Chester had his sword as Nick's throat, one hand gripping his shoulder holding the blade, the other restraining Nick's arms behind his back as he stood behind him.

Nick tried to struggle out of his grip but Chester quickly immobilized him, hissing something in his ear. We both knew options were limited; he was weaponless, sword a few feet away, blade at his throat, Chester out for blood. It looked like he had been cut up a bit from the last time I caught a glance of him too. He had a long cut on his cheek that was bleeding along with a steadily forming black eye. At least it looked like he managed to get Chester too, a nice cut on his leg.

All around me campers were still busy ridding the valley of monsters. They weren't seeing this son of Zeus with his sword at his little brother's throat. Things had just become severely real for me, he was threatening Nick.

I felt a wave of loathing strike me and I saw a flash of Nick being knocked out by the soldier from last year. I ducked as I turned back to the Cyclops I had been fighting, slashing it, a shower of gold dust covering the ground, furiously ending my distraction.

"Chester, your fight is with me, not Nick. Let him go or you _will_ regret it." I called to him, trying to keep my voice level to restrain my visible anger. I stepped forward but he just pressed his blade further against Nick's throat threateningly. I stopped.

"I don't think so, Cooper. As you see, I have to make it out of this and be rid of you at the same time. I know that you have a strong friendship with my brother here, but to what limits would you go to protect him? You say you are on our side, so _prove_ it."

I felt my anger rising, causing the nearby shadows to collect around me. The wind had picked up and it started raining as we stared each other down.

"Allison, get out of here. Don't worry about me, I can handle it, just go! Find Chiron!" Nick pleaded.

"I am not leaving you Nick. He is here for me."

"You know," Chester cut in. "this is very touching and all, but I suggest dropping your weapon and walking over here slowly, Cooper. You wouldn't want anything to happen to dear old Nicky if you didn't listen, now would you?" I was madly trying to find a way out of this, but there was only one way I could see Nick getting out of this alive. _Chiron, where are you when I need you?_

The monsters were few and far between now, campers had started to notice what was happening. The ones who didn't have a monster to deal with had wearily started to approach him, weapons out, ready to coax him into letting Nick go. To them, it must have looked like he completely lost it, which wasn't far off from the truth. It was now or never, Chester was too far gone at this point to reason with, I could see it in his eyes. The mad gleam in them gave me chills.

"Nicole, when this is through, get Nick out of here safely no matter what happens. Promise me!" Nicole was the girl who I knew best of the group, a daughter of Hermes. She gave me a bewildered look but nodded.

I slowly bent down, paying mind to my arm, and placed my sword on the ground, kicking it a few feet away with my foot.

"Good, now come here. No tricks."

I held my hands up a bit to show him that they were empty, but I kept them ready. I started to make my way over to him with grim resolve. Some of the campers were trying to reason with Chester but it was useless. When they got too close he would jerk away, Nick tightly in his grasp, sword still threateningly close to his throat and blew them back with wind. I heard a slight humming noise in my head and a pit formed in my stomach, it felt like death was near. I gritted my teeth, resigning to the fact that this was going to turn out with only one outcome, one alternative if I was very lucky. I was scanning my surroundings, trying to find the best opportunity. I couldn't meet Nick's eyes yet. _There._

As I grew closer I started to slow but the sword was just pressed further against Nick's throat, drawing a small amount of blood. I held my hands up further to show him that I was surrendering. I made eye contact with Nick._ I'm sorry_ I told him silently. His eyes grew wide, silently telling me not to try anything and just get out of here. His eyes then changed, seeing my plan. They grew wide, giving me a nearly imperceptible shake of his head, pleading with me not to try anything. I gave him a small shake back. This was the only option. I could only imagine what he was thinking in his head, cursing my stubbornness. A tug signaled the last opportunity to go back was gone.

"Good, now come over here and-" He was cut short by a large rock slamming into his side, his blade getting knocked aside and Nick pushed a few feet away they both tumbled to the ground. I heard a few campers gasp but I quickly activated my necklace and surged toward Chester. He managed to regain his balance quickly and lightning crackled above us, struck his blade, and shot at me. I made a split second decision and dove into the shadows, the lightning breaking the earth where I had just been, Nick shouting.

I reappeared right beside Chester, he had a wild look in his eyes as we made contact, almost feral. I heard Nick shout again and I saw a flash of gold in Chester's normally blue eyes as we both swung our weapons toward the other. Both made contact. As my blade hit Chester's neck, his sword drove itself into my abdomen. Pain flared through me and my blade fell from my grasp, my breathing hitched and I stumbled. I fell to the ground as did Chester, his body falling away from me and into a puddle. As I made contact with the ground another flash of pain jolted through me accompanying the burning pain in my stomach. I curled in on myself, hands clutching my stomach.

Nick scrambled up fully and rushed over to my side. His eyes had a new light to them, a panicked look I didn't see often. He slid down to me, brushing aside some blood and rainwater that cascaded down from the sky from the cut on his cheek, casting the briefest glares at Chester's prone body. I knew he was already gone.

"Allison, oh my gods, what were you thinking! Are you- no-scratch that, beyond stupid question, you are clearly _not_ okay. This wasn't supposed to happen, you should have left me! You needed to get out of here." He pulled out a bag of ambrosia and some nectar. I found myself struggling for breath, the pain making the act difficult. It felt as if there was a red-hot burning flame to my stomach.

Nick quickly uncapped the nectar, hands shaking, and drizzled it onto my wound, forcing me to eat all the ambrosia. Some of the campers got out of their stupor, the last of the monsters long gone by now. Even the taste of my mother's homemade caramel didn't help the moment - it just made me think of her and how I wouldn't see her again for a long time.

"Nick-"

"No, don't talk, focus on breathing." He looked at the blade helplessly, unsure what to do with the sword protruding through me until the campers started approaching, a daughter of Apollo rushing over the fastest, trailed by her brother. As the ambrosia and nectar worked their way into my system the pain lessened, but not by much. Chester had made his last strike count.

"Looks like neither Chester or I made it out, huh?" I swallowed hard, taking a breath. "But I couldn't just leave you there Nick, I saw it in his eyes. He wouldn't just let you go. Besides, I owe you one." I tried for a smile but it came out more like a grimace. It was true I owed him for keeping me up and moving after Italy last year, even if he denied it. I would have done it anyway though, regardless of that.

"Not funny Allison, you- you're dying and you are cracking jokes, and you know that isn't the same! Is this how you want to be remembered? Cracking jokes?" His voice cracked at his last sentence.

The able-bodied campers were gathered around the scene now, some hovering over Chester's body, the rest unsure what was happening and what to do. Two children of Ares were arguing about "What the Hades is happening!" I knew they had questions, and rightfully so, but I wanted to make the rest of my time count. I could already feel my life aura weakening, which was an unpleasant feeling in it of itself.

The daughter of Apollo and her brother crouched down in front of me, the boy rifling through his bag. He pulled out some slightly water soaked bandages and cloths to staunch the wound, tossing his bow to the side. He and his sister wordlessly started working, I had the worst, most life-threatening injury present among all of us. They didn't bother with Chester, it was too late for him. He pressed the fabric against my stomach and back around the blade, gently taking my trembling hands away. Then, as gently as she could, his sister pulled the blade free. A new wave of pain rolled over me, black spots dancing on the edges of my vision and I gritted my teeth. The boy quickly put some nectar on it and started wrapping.

"Damn it, Cooper. This isn't good Nick, this wound is bad. Look, I don't know what the heck all that was about, but that doesn't matter. I will not lose a patient. Screw Chester, the war got to his head, I knew something wasn't right with him since last summer. Cooper has always helped camp, he was blind not to be able to see it." Then after a pause, her eyes tracing to my fallen weapon. "I recognize those powers, but she isn't like them. She helped camp." She said loud enough for the other campers to hear. _Ellen, that's her name. She was on the Poland trip. And the boy, Alan. He came last winter._ I felt a small smile tug at my lips despite myself. Then I focused my gaze back to Nick.

"Nick, I would rather joke than cry about how unfair it is or something. I.. I know I'm not going to make it back to camp." I told him, my voice catching. I squeezed my eyes shut, then looked back to him as he spoke.

"No, don't say things like that. You can't be dying on me, not like this. I refuse to accept it." He muttered, panic evident in his voice as he tried to get me into a more comfortable position, briefly glaring at Chester's body.

"No, if this was how I was meant to go out, I am glad I was able to save you along the way, Nick. We will see each other again though." He just looked at me mournfully, wiping his eyes quickly, probably hoping I mistook them for the rain. Most of the other campers were keeping their distance, whispering, but let us have some privacy - probably sensing the limited time. Nicole was slowly making her way over to us though. I felt my blade return to its necklace form at my neck after never being recalled manually.

"No, Allison you have to make it. Don't talk like its already done. We can get you back to camp- we can-"

"Nick," I cut him off. "this was bound to happen at some point. War is not the place for kids, even if we are demigods. I would never be able to stay at camp like I was for long anyways, the odds were against it. Eventually someone would find out. Just.. just live your life for me, okay? Live it to the fullest and beat them for me. You can tell me all about it when we see each other again. Tell the rest of the camp what happened, and tell Chiron that I'm sorry, he knows what else. My mom already knows what I would say to her, just look after her for me please." I said slowly.

By this point I could feel myself being pulled down further, not just my aura slipping away anymore. My senses were dulling and becoming numb. I reached out with my hand and grasped his. The pain was slowly ebbing away, leaving no feelings whatsoever. Nick cradled my head, brushing my hair out of my face quietly, trying to savor the time we had left. Alan shook his head slightly as he wrapped the cut on my arm after trying to seal it , I could only faintly feel it. Ellen was trying to do some Apollo healing magic on my stomach, but I didn't know what effect it was having. Nicole was now crouched down in front of me, pieces of her short brown hair falling from her ears, her face torn.

"Allison, don't worry. I'll get him back to camp safely and keep an eye on him. You've done enough, just.. rest."

I managed to give her a small nod, trying to convey all my thanks through my look. I felt horrible that Nick had to see this, but I was happy I made what I had of my life count. I felt a strange sense of peace, but there was still this subtle persistent feeling of underlying panic. I wanted to see out the end of the war, grow up and see the world in peace again. I had to fix my sibling's wrongs, fix our legacy. I wanted to help Nick as much as I could - I didn't want him to be haunted by my death. Survivor's guilt.

For some reason though, it felt like this wasn't the end. Not just the Underworld being that end either. It was like the calm before the storm. I wasn't sure why though, I knew I was nearly gone now, that being one of the few thoughts I could still manage. The only thing left for me was my father's kingdom. I promised myself I would find Nick despite that though. I wouldn't leave him. I heard Ellen and her brother trying desperately to save the last shred of me.

I pooled my remaining strength into squeezing Nick's shaking hand. "You are my best friend Nick. Wait for me, I'm not quite done yet." I said quietly, meeting his electric stormy blue eyes for one last time. Nick gave me a sad smile, but his eyes were red and watery, black eye nicely formed and cut still leaking. The pain was hardly there, replaced with nothingness, with darkness. But I heard him respond despite that; "I'm not done either, you will not be forgotten. Until next time Allison, I will wait." He vowed.

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-Cover Art by incredibru (Amazing artist)

-Look to the next chapter's AN. when I post the updated version of it for a brief summary of the story, as you might be thinking, why bother reading this still?-  
**Have an awesome week!**


	2. Chapter 2: The Jacksons

**AN 12/14/15: **The long awaited next chapter revamp is finally here. I have had this, along with other chapters already written, but I have gone over this story, especially the first chapters so many times by now I was slightly burned out. I am still working on the second story - that hasn't changed, do not fear. I have not spent all this time idle and not writing. I have been working on that and a special project of mine, which is partly writing practice for something to do with this story. Anyway, enjoy the chapter - you will be able to see where this story is going after this chapter. I will say though, I got some activity on this story and it has made my day, also adding more fuel to my writing. As always, enjoy your week, and if you find any typos just shoot me a message and I will fix it.

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I wouldn't be able to tell you with certainty about what happened next, but I knew for a fact that I was not aboard Charon's ferry on its way to the Underworld. It was as if I was asleep for the longest time. I had no sense of time or my surroundings. Everything was quiet, everything was numb, everything was dark. Memories came and went. I was just left to think about all of what had transpired in my short life.

Eventually I started to regain my senses. As I said, I wasn't able to tell how much time I had been in my previous state, but long enough to know I was over with the silence. There was something soft under my head and a slight bobbing feeling, as if someone was walking, and my face was cold. Scratch that, everything was cold. I had tried to move but I couldn't. My eyelids wouldn't open either, it felt as if they weighed a million pounds.

I felt a short sense of descent, then it stopped. I managed to force my eyes open a crack and saw what I thought could be streetlight and snow. There was a quiet chime and the sound of retreating steps. I saw a flicker of movement and a door opened to reveal a woman with brown hair and sparkling blue eyes who stepped into the light. She glanced around for a moment, then her eyes drifted down. We made eye contact and she took a sharp intake of breath. _Is this giant land?_ I felt so low to the ground. The woman hurriedly crouched down to my level and scooped me up, quietly looking around for traces of what I assumed to be people in the area. I wasn't sure what to think of this - my mind was still foggy.

"Who left you here, sweetie?" She mumbled half to herself. "What am I going to do with you? I can't just leave you out here in the cold." Even through my clouded thoughts I knew I didn't know this woman or whether or not she was a monster. Even if that seemed unlikely, you never know. I tried to move free but that accomplished nothing.

"Shh, don't worry. I promise I will keep you safe." She said to me as she cradled me against her, her warmth radiating. "I have a son you know, I think you two would get along, become friends maybe." She soothed and I felt a wave of calmness wash over me. My senses were still slowly coming back, so everything was dulled, even if the cold was evident. I relished in the warmth this woman gave off though, it encompassed me like a blanket as she held me. I knew there was some part in the back of my mind saying how off this whole thing was, but I wasn't able to focus on that. I did know that it was a pleasant change from nothingness and the dark for so long.

She brought me back through the door from which she came and up a set of stairs. We entered what I assumed to be her living room given what was visible from my point of view, and sat down. A part of me registered that I felt like a little kid again. My body felt so tiny compared to this woman's frame. It was bizarre, especially after my most recent memories. I briefly wondered if this was a dream but shook away the thought. This felt too real to be a dream, even a demigod one. There was no better explanation for it though.

Drowsiness quickly started pulling on my mind but I was wary about going back to sleep. I didn't want to go back to the maddening silence.

The woman propped me up and I realized I was wrapped in a blanket. Something must have caught her eye because she took something that I realized was poking out of the confines of the fabric. It was a note of some kind. She read it for a few moments, then looked to me.

"Well then, Allison, it looks as if we will be spending a good amount of time together from now on. I'm Sally Jackson." The feeling she was giving off was one of caring and compassion - so drastically different from the feelings surrounding that last fight. _She seems nice._ But I wondered what the card read. I tried to keep my eyes open longer but the draw to sleep again was becoming too much. The woman-Sally-pulled me in closer and rubbed my back a bit.

"Don't you look adorable." Was all I could remember her saying before I was out.

When I woke I finally felt more awake and aware of everything. I was able to move around fairly regularly, albeit it was odd in such a small body. _Wait a minute, why am I so tiny?_ I looked down at myself in shocked amazement, a tiny yelp escaping me. _I look like a toddler! _ My hands were so tiny too, not what I was expecting to see. I forced myself to breathe. _Okay, new environment, unknown situation. Assess any dangers and gather information. _That was what Chiron always told us to do when we were in an unknown place.

I made myself look away from my hands to take in my surroundings, which I probably should have done in the first place, but I had been too shocked by my apparent shrinkage. I was in a moderately sized blue room that had a comfortable looking chair in one corner, a play area for a young child with some odd and brightly colored toys. There was a dresser and a closet too. I looked to where I was and realized I was in a light brown wooden frame bed. Blue blankets were scattered across its surface, the one that had been covering me fallen away. It was a lot warmer than what I assumed was the night before.

The door to the hall was open and I heard some noise from beyond it. I tried standing but stumbled, putting my hand against the wall to steady myself. My feet sunk lightly into the blanket, but it hardly made an indent. _Wait, that wasn't a dream?_ I felt more panic rise up in me. I was supposed to be in the Underworld, I had _died._ If this was rebirth I shouldn't be able to remember my previous life. I would have been given a choice for that matter too. Somehow I knew I hadn't at all been to the Underworld. I couldn't think of any logical reason to my being here, and things looked so... _different._ I couldn't quite place what exactly it was though.

If I wanted answers I needed to find that lady Sally again. I figured she was probably nearby so I just started making some noise to alert her that I was awake. After a few seconds I heard a voice say something and footsteps quickly approaching, then Sally walked in. Her hair was tied back and she had a relaxed sort of shirt on and what I assumed to be pajama pants. They had little snowflake designs on them, which was very odd compared to what I was used to seeing on clothes. She leaned over and picked me up. A smile was on her face. _She seems.. legitimately caring._

"Hey there, sleepy head. Did you just get up? I'll take you to see Percy, you two can play. How does that sound?" She brought me back out of the room, into the hallway, and into the room from before. It was weird, being carried so much, but I didn't know how I would do if I had to walk just then. She probably thought me to be like any other child my size. _When in doubt, play along until you know the full extent of your situation. _That was another thing Chiron always said. It had helped me blend into places on multiple occasions. Now that I got a better look around I noticed the different things in the room - the dark carpet, a couch, coffee table, and a really fancy looking futuristic television. _Things have changed so much, where am I and how long was I out for?_ There was a small pine tree in the corner of the room that had a few ordainments on its branches. _Christmas?_

Playing on the carpet was a little boy, a bit younger than two years if I had to guess, playing with some stuffed animals. The boy, Percy I assumed, had black hair, and once he saw his mother come into the room he turned.

"Mama!" He cried, his face beaming. Sally walked over to him, me in tow, and sat down next to him.

"I wasn't gone for long Percy, but I have a friend for you to meet. This is Allison." She said while readjusting me on her lap to face the boy. Percy scooted forward, looking at me. His eyes were a bright, happy green, the toddler's eyes like the sea. He gently reached his hand out and put it on my bare foot. He smiled and looked up at his mother for reassurance._ He seems really attached to her, his father probably works a lot. That or he is a mama's boy._

"Go on, Percy. She might be uneasy because this is a new place for her, but she is about your age. I'm sure she would love to play with you. Isn't that right, Allison?" Sally said gently, not taking her eyes off of us. I was still not used to my new body but I was determined to stand. The only problem was that it was so small and not very well coordinated, so when I tried I had to use Sally's arm to keep me up.

Percy picked up a stuffed bunny with his tiny hands and held it out to me, a goofy toddler smile on his face. I eyed the bunny, then accepted his gift, smiling for him. We ended up spending most of the day in their living room, our interactions on my part becoming slowly easier. Sally would smile at me every now and then, as if at a thought in her head, and played along with Percy, but she gave me space when needed.

It was surreal for me. For the past number of years in my life I had been helping fight a war, then I got a sword ran through me. Now I was a toddler. It didn't make any sense whatsoever, but I just kind of went with it and played along. I had always liked kids, they were so sweet and innocent, especially at this age. They reminded me of simpler times. I was soon able to move around with minimal trouble, but I made sure to not look too coordinated. I was apparently a two year old in the eyes of Sally after all.

The day went like how one would expect with a toddler, or two for that matter. Percy babbled happily, playing with his toys and we ate snacks occasionally. I played with him too, even if I was still weirded out by this whole experience.

I caught myself more than just a few times zoning out throughout the day, trying to solve the puzzle as to why I was here, and how. If I was indeed in the future-if that is what you would call it-then what worried me was what had become of Nick and my mother? Were they still out there, and how long had it actually been, if they were even still alive?_ Oh gods, Nick would have had to go to a funeral for his best friend. I left him on his own._

That thought especially hit me really hard. Ever since we found out we were demigods we just grew even closer. We anchored each other throughout all the madness, but I left him.

Sally noticed my quietness when that realization came about, the upset look I was sure my face held.

"What's the matter, honey?" She asked, putting down a toy. I was at a loss as to how to answer that, or if I even could. After all, it would be pretty scary to have a supposed toddler speaking in fully constructed sentences and ask question like the ones that were pressing on my mind.

I frowned and went for the easiest response. "Nick." I didn't know what exactly made me say even that much, but it just felt right. I felt so alone in that moment, so horrible to have done that to my best friend that I needed to let it out of my head, even slightly. As it was, Sally's brow creased and she looked to be wrapped up in thoughts.

Eventually she announced it was time for bed and picked both Percy and I up, one of us in each arm. She took us to the room I had woken up in, which I assumed to be Percy's room, and she set us down. Percy looked even more tired and I felt when Sally tucked us in. It was a bit odd, sharing a bed with a toddler, but who was I kidding? This whole thing was weird. There were more pressing things than where I slept, and Percy was just a kid.

* * *

As time passed, days turned into weeks, weeks into months. I still hadn't figured out any concrete answers by this point. There was a small part of me that thought this might not turn out so bad - when one door closes another one opens, right?

I wanted to be able to see my family again though. I kept reminding myself of the solid things I knew to be true: I had died on that mission - the pain had been too real to be fake, and I still had the scars from that battle alongside that. The entry wound on my stomach was now just a slightly red mark and a similar one was on my back at the exit point of the sword. A scar on my arm marked where Chester had slashed me. When Sally first saw them the next morning, let's just say she was taken by surprise. She probably thought that wherever I had come to them from had something to do with it. She was right in a way, I had to have gotten them from somewhere.

Good things had come out of this whole situation, whatever _this_ classified as, at least. I had gotten to meet Sally Jackson: a woman who cared for her son, and even me a lot. She was such a sweet person, and Percy in turn was such a sweet little kid. It made things easier than it could have been had I been left somewhere else.

I discovered that Percy loved this fuzzy seal stuffed animal. He carried that thing everywhere. When we were at the kitchen table, his toy was there. Napping? He had that thing wrapped in his pudgy arms. The seal's name was Flappy, but he pronounced it "Fwappy".

Often times when Percy and I got tired, Sally would just hold us and sit on the couch, letting us enjoy each other's company. It was odd, being a young kid again, or at least in the body of my old self from when I was little. I had grown used to doing everything for myself back then, such as that of the life of a demigod, even more so for a child of Hades. Despite that, it was nice to just focus on enjoying myself for once. To not worry about war, monsters, or impending doom. Life was simple again in a strange way, and I relished in it. I did have many times of worry and distress - those were not completely gone, but the good helped counter that.

One of the major things I noticed in the world around me was the new tech. Over time I grew to learn through watching Sally do things what some of the things were. There were now things like computers, cell phones, color television, and newer cars. The view of the city outside was so much more grand and complex too. At first, the big changes really blew my mind, but I quickly grew to appreciate them. It was a bit of a melancholy feeling though - the whole world was so different from when I left it, and I could never go back.

Cars had adapted to be sleeker and more compact; very different from the big and bulky cars I had known. They were much more colorful now too, and radios were more common additions in vehicles. Sometimes I would be able to hear people blaring music all the way from the street into the house. Music was another thing too, it was more wild in a sense. I was used to artists like Frank Sinatra, Billie Holiday, and Bing Crosby. It was a whole new world out there. Heck, I still remembered when The Wizard of Oz came out.

One of the things I really liked was the way people dressed - for the most part. Women and girls did not have to wear dresses all the time to fit with the norms of society. I used to break that norm frequently anyway. I always preferred to wear pants with a casual shirt, nothing restricting. I do admit though, I did like some of the dresses I had and wore them sometimes back then. I always had to wear one for school too.

That was one of the things that came in handy in life for mobility while fighting. One of the most important things of being a demigod was to always be ready for a fight. Having the right clothes was a big part of that, aside from basic training and weapons of course. You don't want to die because you couldn't move around properly to defend yourself. You would be a laughing-stock.

* * *

One of the things I did manage to answer happened in my first week with the Jacksons, and it hit me like a ton of bricks.

Percy and I were at the kitchen table as Sally cleaned up breakfast and I saw a newspaper on her seat. I remember thinking that this would be my chance to see exactly how much time had passed, even if I was apprehensive to know for sure. I pulled down the paper for a better look and what I saw devastated me.

The year, it was roughly fifty years from when I had left my old life. Then I realized with a start that this was January. I did a mental count of the days I had been here and it felt like ice rolled down my spine. I came here on my birthday - January fourth. Wrong year, but correct date. My mother would be an old woman by now, if not dead. Nick, being a demigod and a son of Zeus, he would be long gone. That was only magnified by the World War I left behind - a child of the Big Three's chances were slim to none to still be around at this time.

Before I saw the paper I still held onto the hope that somehow I might be able to see them again, but this changed everything. By the time I would be physically old enough to search for them, they would be far from my reach.

Sally noticed my silence by that point and walked over, drying her hands on a towel. She crouched down next to me.

"What's the matter, Ally? Did you get a paper cut?" She took a hold of my hands and gently looked them over. When I looked up at her, my exterior walls that I always kept firm crumbled and tears spilled down my face. Sally quickly picked me up, trying to sooth me. I looked back at the paper, having to double check the date.

Everything I once valued was gone and I was here, stuck in the body of toddler me fifty years later. I was not dead like my instincts screamed at me that I should be, my very existence just felt so wrong. That was made doubly worse by my heritage.

In the end I was quiet for a number of days after the fact. I still get waves of that same feeling of not belonging to this date. The feeling that my existence was overall wrong and that I wasn't where I was supposed to be - when I was supposed to be. Torn from where I belonged.


	3. Chapter 3: First Day of School

**AN 12/15/14: **This is the revamped chapter three, and as a summary of my old AN, it was basically that since this was a shorter chapter I posted the next chapter midweek after posting (Which is usually on Fridays/Saturdays). Enjoy!

* * *

By the time a year and a half passed, Sally determined that it was time for Percy and I to start Preschool. Somehow she had gotten papers for me saying that I was her adopted child. Whether it be godly interference, or resourcefulness, I didn't know. I was positive that I would not have a valid birth certificate for myself nowadays, but whatever worked. By the time the year anniversary came about that I had been with them, she made a little celebration. It was odd, as it was my actual birthday, but she probably didn't know how right her celebration was date wise. I would rather live with Sally and Percy than in some home though. I had grown to enjoy staying with them, as odd the situation was. Sally even kept my last name as Cooper, to which I was thankful for. It was still one solid piece of my old life I was still able to hold onto.

As the date grew closer I grew more anxious about it. This would be the start of Percy and I being outside in the real world, aside from the occasional outing or shopping trip. I didn't know if I still had the same demigod scent; no monsters had attacked since I arrived here, so as far as I could tell it was in the least not at the same level it used to be. Now that we would be interacting with more people, there was a higher chance of monsters. The last thing I wanted to do was bring danger to Sally or Percy.

The morning of the first day was a bit hectic but Sally did a good job of making it seem like a normal, relaxed morning for Percy and I. Sally was rushing around a lot that morning, between making breakfast for the three of us and getting our things packed and jackets on.

As a little treat, Sally had packed some Hot Wheels toy cars in Percy's bag. For me, I had on a backpack with a stuffed moose in it. It was a cute toy that I figured a lot of three year olds would enjoy having. I had grown "attached" to it for the same of keeping Sally in the belief that I was just a normal child. I had even nicknamed it "Moo".

We had woken up in our usual fashions: Percy running around and me drinking some juice from a special toddler cup Sally gave us, legs swinging loose on the chair. Sally even had taken the time to braid my hair up nicely for the occasion. It reminded me of when my mother would do that. Basically though, it was just the average morning in the Jackson household, just a bit more enthusiastic.

The cab ride to the school was a short one, filled with Percy babbling excitedly about what school might be like and how he was excited to see the other kids. For my part I was mainly thinking about what school would be like. I would have to go through it all again - all of the grades repeated. _As if it hadn't been a pain enough the first time around_.

It would be tedious to have to go through all the lessons little kids got, I didn't need those. I still had the experiences and mind of a young teenage demigod and all that came with it. Stuff that even the typical adult wouldn't have experienced. All of the loss and tragedy that came with war, one that held a host of kids in the crossfire, as with what comes with war, still burned in my memory. I would never be able to forget all that, nor would I want to in some respects. It made me who I am. I tried to look on the bright side though, I could at least help Percy through school, and I might even learn some new things as the grade level progressed too. Times have changed so much that it was bound to happen.

I had my cautions about Percy and I being in the same school building, I had grown suspicious as to who his father was after I learned he was absent. Percy had a strong aura for a child, not one of just the normal mortal child. From what I could also tell, he had the defining hyperactive like traits of a demigod. His battlefield senses always keeping him active. I would be able to see soon if he had trouble reading English.

Once Percy learned that having just one parent is not normal he would start asking questions. I might be able to glean information out of Sally that way, as I couldn't just upright ask her. I was, after all, supposed to be a child. Though the more I knew the better I would be able to protect them. My last wish for him was to live such a short life like the one I had lived. That was no life for a kid.

* * *

A bit after Sally dropped us off into the care of Mrs. Russell, the main teacher at Happy K's Preschool, we were told to circle up. I had to drag Percy away from the toy hub, bringing him into the circle. We sat on a carpet that was made up of boxes of different colors and letters within the squares it was divided into. In short: this was not a demigod friendly carpet by any means.

Once all the kids were gathered around, Mrs. Russell went through her introductions, the classroom aids spread throughout the group to keep everyone seated and facing front. Next to me Percy was bouncing up and down excitedly, nudging me with a wide grin on his face that said: "_Isn't this awesome?_". Percy and I had grown close over the time I spent with him and Sally. We would always stick together and he would give me sloppy toddler hugs at times too. The first time he did it, it came as a slight shock. I hadn't been expecting it, but I have warmed up to it since then. I was just glad to see him having such a fun time today.

As the day passed on, time was spent playing games and the staff ran through the emergency procedures with us. We learned names through games and went over rules - as much as you could with kids this age anyway. I spent most of my time with Percy, idly playing the games while watching for any signs of trouble. It was an old habit I had developed that was hard to break. Every now and then I would find my hand had drifted to my wrist or neck, checking for my weapons. Being out in public made me more aware of things without Sally around.

Percy on the other hand was having the time of his life playing with so many kids his age. At one point I saw a classroom aid looking at Percy and I strangely, but I brushed it off, chalking it up to Percy's odd attempts at doing a somersault.

The end of the day was taken up by a nap time, then pick up. The cab ride home was nice, I could tell Sally was very entertained by Percy's dramatic stories about the adventures of the day. For dinner she made us chicken-parmesan with green beans, and for dessert: vanilla ice cream. After the initial energy spike that came along with the ice cream, we both crashed, tired from the long day.

* * *

That night my dreams were filled with visions of my past. They were not entirely unusual, I would have a memory at times play out in my dreams sometimes, but nothing like this. It was Nick and I in the arena, battling it out to see who could beat who. The days Nick and I would play outside, the rare times my mother and I would go out for ice cream. Those were the happier memories in my life. Then my dreams took a turn from the norm.

I saw glimpses of different missions I had gone on. Battles, monsters, etcetera. All of the tough choices I had to witness and experience again. I saw when I had to kill my half-brother in Italy after we were captured, the mountain cracking. Then I was back fighting the monsters on my last day, but this time we were being overrun. I saw some campers being taken down and I found myself being separated from Nick no matter how hard I fought against it.

Chester came into the picture next, and this time he didn't just hold Nick captive to get me to cooperate, he simply killed him. I stood there, mortified, watching him fall to the ground, feeling as his life went dark, his electric blue eyes catching mine one last time before glazing over. It was my worst fear - losing him and being helpless to save him. All traces of life had left him. Chester then turned to me, a cruel smile marring his face, and spoke. But his voice wasn't him. The voice was powerful and ancient sounding.

_"So, she has returned. You could have been a valuable asset to me, but you had to die for a reason. You were becoming too powerful, too uncontrolled. It would have been detrimental to my plans. No, you could not continue on the path you were on. Now look at you, a mere child again. Pathetic, what were they thinking? Yet you may be of used to me. Keep an open mind, Miss. Cooper. Your options are limited."_ He said, then looked down at Nick.

_"If you do not want more of this to happen, you will choose wisely. The gods have done nothing for you, they let you die in vain. Keep that in mind."_ Chester's eyes were now golden, like the brief flash I had seen in his final moments. He radiated power so intense that I struggled to breathe. I didn't understand what was happening. _Who is this? That isn't Chester, and I 'had to die for a reason'? Did this thing cause my death?_

Chester walked past Nick's body, kicking it as he went. I flinched at the sight. He approached me, leveling his sword.

_"A new age is coming. Remember this conversation when the time comes." _ He said, his voice cold. I tried to move, to activate my weapons, but I was frozen in place. It was as if I was trying to move through thick syrup.

His figure stopped before me, putting his sword tauntingly against where the real Chester's blade had actually killed me. I felt the spot on my arm begin to sting, then he jerked his sword forward. The pain was as real as the first time, maybe worse. My breath hitched. Chester pulled out the sword roughly and pushed me away. I fell to the ground, released from the spell. I clutched my stomach, curling in on myself protectively like last time. I felt myself shaking, the pain a burning, struggling to breathe.

When I looked back up at Chester, he was no longer alone. Firmly in his grip was Percy. Little, tiny, innocent Percy. His eyes were marred with tears, a terrified look on his face.

_"He will be next, you can't save them all unless you are smart about your choices."_ The voice speaking through Chester warned. My gaze drifted to Nick's motionless form, then back to Chester and Percy.

"I will end you. You won't touch him." I seethed. Nobody would harm anyone I loved again. Chester had hurt Nick, then he had killed me, leaving him alone in the world.

Chester just shrugged, as if that was not a serious threat, but he was wrong. I would make this thing pay. He then he stepped forward, looking down at me, cold golden eyes suddenly blazing.

_"Think what you want. I will win in the end, with or without your help, little hero. Be on the right side when that time comes."_ He told me. He then pulled back his boot covered foot and kicked me in the head, making my vision go black.


	4. Chapter 4: The Snake

**AN 12/19/15:** Revamped this chapter. It was a short one so when I released it it was a few days after the previous chapter, as it is a bit of a slower chapter too. Enjoy!

* * *

I woke with a start, jerking upward in bed up to immediately fall back down, one hand holding my aching stomach, the other my head. _Who in my father's name was _that_? What was controlling him? _My mind was buzzing. _It seemed so old and powerful, what the heck does it want with me? _ I leaned against the cool wall, I had been sweating in my sleep. I gently lifted up the bottom of my pajama shirt. Underneath was the scar from Chester, but it was an angry red. It felt like a similar case on my back too.

I let out a short sigh, putting back down the shirt and leaned my head back against the wall, panting slightly. _Why does this have to happen now? Why didn't it happen earlier, or when I was more "grown up"?_ I thought I had been done with demigod stuff, at least for a while. Apparently that wasn't the case anymore. Whatever that being was... it was without a doubt related to that world.

It was a couple minutes of me just leaning against the wall, eyes closed, until Sally came in to wake Percy and I up. When she came in she saw my position and came over, looking me over to see what was the matter as usually I didn't get up this early. She sat down on the bed and said. "What's the matter, Ally? You look upset." Sally, Percy, my mother, and Nick are the only people I have ever let all me Ally. Chiron always called me by my full name anyways, even though I wouldn't mind if he did shorten it.

Sally must have seen my hand's position over my stomach because she gently lifted it away, looking at the mark, and turning me slightly to see my back. I bit my lip, still rapidly thinking over my dream. The mark on my arm wasn't as bad like my torso, but it was still sore. Sally's brow creased when she saw the angry redness to the marks.

"Were you scratching at these? It wasn't like this last time I checked. Did something happen Allison?" She asked me, putting down the edge of my shirt and pulling me against her.

I debated for a few seconds what to tell her - she wasn't stupid. She knew something happened to get them like this. I decided just to shake my head and lean into her. Images of Nick on the ground dead, Percy terrified and crying, those golden, haunting eyes, all flashing through my head. I decided that I could use some comfort after that whopper of a dream.

"Alright, well if they start hurting let me one of your teachers know, okay? Come on, let's get you two ready for school." She said as she picked me up to go over to Percy's bed and get him up. He was kind of sprawled out on the bed drooling. I knew Sally didn't buy my response.

The morning went by as if nothing had happened, but I did catch Sally sneak a few glances at me when she thought I wasn't looking. School went fine; Percy had gotten me to enter a game of tag with him and some other kids. Miss. Abby, one of the younger classroom aids, even played. I ended up hanging further back from the group so I didn't get tagged much- I didn't want to run too much, I was still sore.

My head and arm didn't really bug me anymore, but I still couldn't get the images out of my head. I kept seeing the cold, lifeless body of Nick. Feeling his life aura leaving him again sent shivers through me. Those eyes, Percy scared for his life. I could tell that I would remember those for a long time to come.

I didn't get any more dreams like that one, but I wasn't able to forget a dream like that, even if I wanted to. I knew it had to mean something but I just couldn't piece it all together yet. The year was progressing nicely though, despite the rough start. It was a lot better than I had expected. I guess I was just used to my old school days in my expectations. Percy did indeed have trouble like most demigods did with reading and writing. After concluding that, that put me on higher alert whenever we were out - just to be safe, the dream Percy making me never want to see him like that outside of dreams even more so.

When there wasn't anybody nearby or looking, I would even try to practice my powers a bit. In this body I got very tired a lot easier, not as much energy to work with. I could only do the very basics, nothing to the level I had been at. I was determined to keep on top of it though, I didn't want to get out of practice and run into a problem that would require them. They were my only weapon now. I might grow to be even better than I was with this early start, but it was frustratingly dim at this point. I could only do so much, and I didn't dare try shadow traveling yet; in such a small body it would be too dangerous even if I had the energy.

I admit, I did use them for fun at times too. During hide and seek I would be able to pull some shadows around me to help me hid, but not enough to be noticeable. Just enough to give that slight edge. I would teach Percy beginners swordplay as best I could on the playground too. He just thought we were playing pirates. I made sure to keep up with running, to be able to keep a steady pace for longer, and sprint longer - even if I didn't go very fast yet.

* * *

We almost made it through the entire school year without incident, and considering my past luck with that type of thing, that was pretty good. Typically by this point some teacher would have been a monster or we would have been called back to camp for something. Back with Nick, as we grew older we would always have at least one incident by the time half the year had passed. I guess that is just what you get from putting two children of the Big Three in the same school. Percy and I made it to the last two months of school, so I was content for the most part, even if it was somewhat disconcerting for something to happen at this age.

The morning it happened had started like any other: breakfast, getting dressed, the cab ride, drop off, school activities they used to have little kids learn skills. Nap time rolled around and we all went to the cots. Percy and I had neighboring cots, close enough to be able to touch the other's had we wanted to. I was pretty tuckered out, I had been practicing with my powers again, so I fell asleep fairly easily.

I woke to a disturbing scene. Percy was sitting upright in his cot, hitting something against the side of it, strangling it. When I looked close I saw it was a brown, scaly snake. It was still writhing around a bit, but after a few seconds and a couple more hits, it went slack. I sighed in relief, then got up to see if Percy was okay. I double checked to make sure the snake was indeed dead too.

"Ally, it was trying to sleep in my bed." Percy explained innocently, holding out the snake to show me. "But it was being funny, his mouth was open and he was sticking his tongue out at me." He giggled a bit, probably finding the memory of what he thought to be an innocent act humorous. Then he frowned. "Got scared though, picked him up and hit him 'few times. He's sleeping now, shhh." He held a finger to his mouth in a kind of shushing gesture. I was busy looking around for any traces of who let the snake in. The area was spotless though, no traces of anything anywhere. My heart was still pounding from the shock of it all.

"You did the right thing, Percy. Good job. If another snake tries to be friends with you again, just hit it a bit, okay?" I told him looking back to him. He nodded just as Mrs. Russell came in with Sally. Both women, upon seeing the scene, let out shocked gasps and rushed over. Sally grabbed the snake away from Percy and quickly threw it away from us. She scooped up the two of us into her arms protectively. Sally looked as if her worst fear had come true.

"Mrs. Russell, I suggest you keep a closer eye on your staff. Dangers can't be around children like that." She said, a fierce look in her eye, not unlike a mama bear.

After a moment Mrs. Russell shook herself out of her daze. "I am so sorry Ms. Jackson, I-I don't know how this happened. I- The last thing I would ever want is to have any of my students get hurt. I will look into this and make sure it will never happen again. I sincerely apologize for this." She stuttered out, clearly baffled herself and not knowing what else to say.

"I think it best if we were to leave now." Sally said, and with that she briskly walked out of Happy K's Preschool, scooping up our backpacks and eyes flitting around to watch for danger. That had been the first clear sign that Percy was a demigod, the snake had been in his cot. He clearly already had a scent to him for that to happen. That meant I needed to keep a closer eye out. Had Percy not woken up when he did, he would be injured, or dead.

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**Feel free to leave a comment on your thoughts.**


	5. Chapter 5: Gabe and School

That summer our lives changed pretty drastically. Sally married a man named Gabe Ugliano, and he was one of the most vile, disgusting men I have ever had the displeasure of meeting. He was duly named Ugliano. Sure, at first he was somewhat nice, but after they got married and we all started living together he started to show his true colors.

Percy may not have noticed it beyond him just being as he would put it: "A butt", but I did. Soon we had come up with the nickname "Smelly Gabe" for him. I'm sorry, but it was the truth, he was a repulsive man. I did get an idea as to why Sally married him though, he stunk so strongly that he might just cover up any demigod scent. Little did she know, she had more than just one demigod to worry about.

I told myself that all that mattered in this new living situation was that we still had Sally. She would take us out of the house more often to Central park to play, or during the holidays to see the window displays. Just to get more quality time together while away from Gabe.

In the warmer months Percy would play in the fountains and we would run around playing games, or have a picnic. We would go sledding in the snow too. Some of the hills were great for that, which surprised me in the city. Seeing the holiday parades in the city and just city living in general was new to me. We sometimes would even get popsicles from stands, or treats from some of the food carts.

Sally would do up my hair as if random days were special occasions at times. She treated me as if I was her own child, but the knowledge I had prevented me from living in the moment at times. I would constantly analyze things and people, observing. It was hard to make friends "my age" because it always felt as if I was babysitting, I just didn't have that novelty to life like other kids had and just be able to let go and enjoy the moment. I saw more than what kids did, I knew the realities. I did enjoy those little moments I had with Sally though, it helped fill the space of where my mother used to be.

When the leaves were falling we would make piles and play in them. At times like these I couldn't help but remember the little memories of what had seemed insignificant at the time, but they now meant the world to me. Memories were all I had of my old life.

Nick used to love to play in the autumn leaves, tossing them into the air and watch them scatter and blow around in the breeze. Sometimes I would just take some time for myself and have quiet time, time I spent thinking about the past. When Sally would notice she would give me space, keeping Percy occupied and Gabe away. I was making new memories now though, I made sure to make the little moments count. We remember the experiences in life over the petty things like material items, it is better to invest in experiences than other stuff that would eventually fade. All of which that was important to me was in my mind.

As the years passed, Percy and I moved from school to school, getting kicked out every time. Something would always happen that pinned the blame on Percy and I. As a pair we had rotten luck with things like that. The first time it happened we were in first grade. Let's just say that I was not a fan of kids who make fun of kids with "disabilities", or kids in general. Those kids got what was coming to them for messing with Percy. After that little incident I could tell Sally paid closer attention to me and some of my more "demigodly" fighting tendencies, probably growing suspicious if she hadn't already been. She already knew I was not the normal child.

It was as if we couldn't stay in one place for more than a year, but in some respects that was a good thing. Having two demigods, one of which being a daughter of one of the Big Three in the same school for too long would be a beacon for monsters. I still wasn't positive about who Percy's father was, but I had my ideas. I had narrowed down the list to a deity that had something to do with water; Percy was in love with the stuff.

I started practicing my powers more often, trying to build up my endurance to what it used to be and working on new skills. My main problem was when the few times I had tried shadow travel, I would pass out from exhaustion. My body still only had so much energy to spare, but I did manage it a few times within the house at night for short distances.

The problem was though, was that I didn't know where I was supposed to be power wise. Having knowledge of my powers at this "young age" was new. I figured I would just have to save working on certain skills until I was able to handle it better. It kind of stunk, but I couldn't do much about it.

Things started picking up on the godly side of things more in the third grade. Ever since that incident with the snake we hadn't had a similar incident, mainly just school issues. Our scents were growing stronger as time went on though. It was just a matter of time until something happened. I had hoped that it would be something not too dangerous this early in Percy's life, but you can never really pick and choose what happens to you.

We were playing on the playground about midway through the year when I noticed him. He was a big, tall man loitering around the outskirts of the play area. I was instantly on high alert. The man was wearing a trench coat with a large brimmed hat on his head so it covered his face in shadows. I was able to see under his hat though, the man had only one eye: a Cyclops. I quickly lead Percy away from him as casually as I could so as not to raise suspicion. Once I got him far enough away I went up to one of the playground supervisors and told her that there was a big, scary man in a coat and hat hanging around the playground. The Cyclops had his eye glued on Percy and I, this was not the best place for a confrontation, I didn't even have a weapon on me. The mortal solution was our best bet, so after a few minutes and a couple threats to call the police, the Cyclops went off grumbling.

I never planned on telling Sally about the Cyclops, I had discovered a while back that she was clear-sighted. I would notice that whenever we were out and about and a monster was off in the distance wandering around, Sally would get stiff and rush Percy and I off in another direction. I didn't want to know that I knew about the godly side of our world yet, or at least the monsters. Percy mentioned the Cyclops though, how there had been a man with what he could swear was just one eye hanging around the school's playground. Soon after, Sally didn't seem too bothered about us being kicked out.

The next year went relatively well, minus the little swim our class took with some sharks. Percy had been leaning over the railing to get a closer look at the sharks when his elbow hit a lever on the catwalk control at Sea World. The whole class, teachers, chaperones, tour guide and all went for a dunk. I don't know why they would have a lever like that anyway. Percy was having a great time in the water though, fascinated with the sharks. I on the other hand was trying to contain my miniature panic attack from being in the water with sharks, Poseidon's domain. The sharks were curious but luckily stayed away. Percy's jovial mood fell though once it was discovered that he had orchestrated that little event.

Our next expulsion went out with a _Bang,_ literally. This was probably my favorite unintentional Percy being a hero moment. Our class had gone on a trip to the Saratoga Battlefield up in Albany and there were a few revolutionary war cannons in the mix. I still don't know why there were primed cannons at a public National Park but hey, who am I to judge? It was cool anyways.

Once our bus parked we all piled out. As our tour guide was talking to us about the history of the battlefield and what happened there I noticed that we were being watched. There was a stray scythian dracaenae who was observing our group from the shadows of the bus. Not the best place to hide from a daughter of Hades on her part.

Don't ask me how he even did it, whether it be diving interference or just plain dumb luck I don't know. Just as the dracaenae started moving closer we heard a sudden deafening _BOOM!_ I jumped as I saw a cannonball shoot straight at the bus, plowing straight through the dracaenae with a puff of monster dust and into the side of the bus. I looked back to the smoking cannon to see Percy with a very, very guilty look standing next to it.

"Nice shot, Percy." I remarked, grinning a bit even with everyone freaking out around us. I don't think he found that very funny, as he had a mortified look on his face from what just happened. But hey, by my book that was an epic shot. He just took out a dracaenae without even knowing it. Despite the amazing shot we were still expelled. No appreciation for good marksmanship now-a-days I guess.


	6. Chapter 6: Yancy

**AN - 5/8/15: In honor of my story's first two followers, and story favoriter (if that is a word) I am releasing this chapter early, and in honor of the weekend. I hope you all had/have and awesome day (I ended up seeing a baby goose my one teacher rescued in my school and had a breakfast food party in history). I really do appreciate the support you give or will give for any readers who will be reading this when more of the story is posted. It brightens my day and those three alerts I got really made my week. Thank you again and enjoy the story. I am always open to ideas and suggestions, or just any comments on this. I hope you enjoy the story, especially as it is starting to pick up now. Bye for now :)**

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**Edit: Typo fix 5/9/15 -Thanks for telling me! I appreciate it, I have gone over this so many times and retyped that it kind of all blurs together at this point. **

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"Be sure to write me every week. I packed you two some extra stamps and envelops so no excuses. All of your forums are filled out and handed in so don't worry about those. All your stuff should be packed, but if something is missing be sure to tell someone or I can send it to you." Sally was heading toward the doors, drop off time coming to a close. "Oh, look at you two, so grown up. You are going to do great, but like I said if you need anything-"

"Mom, we got you the first time." Percy said with a smile. I could tell he was a nervous about Sally leaving us here alone, but he was doing a good job of hiding it for Sally's sake.

"I love you two, I will see you at winter break." She came and gave Percy and I a big hug. There were a few other kids in the lobby saying goodbye to parents, but most kids were alone or already heading to the dorms.

We hugged her back and after what felt like forever, she let go. I understood her worry, this would be the first time we would be off alone somewhere. After the last number of mishaps that had gotten us kicked out of our last schools, I knew she had extra reasons to be anxious. I honestly was too a bit. We were further away from the city, less routes for escape and further away from camp as a last resort. It would take that much longer to get to safety if something happened.

"I'm going to miss you." She said one last time, squeezing in one last quick hug and reluctantly exited through the doors back out to the car. Once she was out of view I turned to Percy.

"Dorm room time?" Holding up my paper. Percy just shrugged, nodded, and started leading the way to where we were told the dorms were. Once we came to the split in the building where the boy's and girl's dormitories were divided we said a few parting words, promised to meet up at dinner, and were on our way.

I found dorm room thirty-five fairly easily and after knocking to see if anybody was home, I took out my key. A few seconds fiddling with the lock and I was in. I stepped inside to see the room to be empty and unsettled. There were two beds on opposite sides of the room but nothing had luggage by it yet. I set my bags down and started unpacking.

My mind wandered as I set up my space, purposefully choosing the bed closest to the window if I needed to make a quick escape. I was getting closer and closer to the age at which I had died at. I felt a sense of dread, would it happen again soon too? The chances of that happening were getting higher and higher. I had no weapons aside from a steel hunting knife I had managed to procure over the years, but nothing good against monsters.

The other thing was that I was protecting Percy too. He was already looking to be a powerful demigod to be reckoned with. With some training, he would become a good fighter. If I was right about who his father was too, we would be in even more danger than I had first predicted we would be at by now in my first few years here.

What would Chiron think if a girl who was supposed to be dead showed up at camp again half a century later? Would I have to die again to set things right? Seeing Chiron again though would be great. It would almost be like seeing your father again after years of being apart. Maybe this time I could even make it known who I was to the rest of camp.

I was snapped out of my thoughts by the door opening. In walked a girl about my age with dirty blonde hair down to her shoulders, dragging in her luggage. I quickly got up from where I was sitting and helped her with her bags.

"Hey, I'm Allison. I take it that you are my roommate?"

"It looks like it, I'm Amy. Nice to meet you." She said with a grateful nod as I took one of her bags. Amy was about my height, which was to say about five foot, maybe a little taller, with chocolate brown eyes. She had some freckles across her nose and wore a number of string friendship bracelets. _I wonder what happened to my old bracelet. _The thought absently popping into my mind.

I helped her set up her bed and move around her bags, and afterward we chatted about ourselves, getting a better feel about who the other was. We talked about things we liked to do, where we came from (this life's details of course), our families, basic stuff like that. She didn't seem like some of the other kids I had seen around here, not really picky, stuck up, or with obvious issues.

I discovered that Amy was from Manhattan too, had a younger brother who was eight, and that she owned a golden retriever named Bynx. I was happy that I had gotten a fairly normal roommate as this school was for "troubled kids". I could tell that we would become friends fairly easily this year.

Percy and I met in the cafeteria for dinner and we chatted about each other's afternoons after we split ways. Percy had a roommate named Grover who he described as pretty nice, if not a bit older looking. I told Percy about Amy, then we moved onto predictions about how this school year might go, along with how we would inevitably be kicked out.

Percy was betting that there would be some type of penguin invasion that was somehow caused by him. Don't ask me how he got that idea, but we had been coming up with stranger and stranger causes for our usual predictions talk. We debated how long we would last too. All of this was just the basic start of the year talk for us. We had classes early the next morning so after hanging around with each other for a while in the hallways after our meal we parted ways, giving a quick hug and wave as we went to our rooms.

The next morning I woke up with enough time to not be rushing around. I took a quick shower, pulling my hair into a quick braid to get it out of my face, got dressed, hid my knife in my boot as usual, and threw on my book bag to leave for my first class. English class with Mr. Nicoll was in room twenty-three in the classrooms building. Mr. Nicoll Was a short, stout man with big eyebrows and a strong jaw that stuck out a bit. How it was set made him have the appearance of always grinning or having a proud expression on his face, almost like a dolphin. His eyes told a different story though. I could tell he wasn't too excited about a whole new year of teaching delinquents.

I found my seat on the chart at the front board and sat down. I watched as kids filed in tiredly and took their seats. I was happy to see Percy when he walked in. He checked the board and took his seat a few down from me in the row behind mine. We smiled at each other and then turned our attention to Mr. Nicoll as he started class.

Second period was science with Mrs. Davis in room forty-two. I climbed the stairs with Percy, who was going to his History class on the same floor. His room came up first so we said a quick goodbye and I found my way to Science.

I had always liked Science class, doing different experiments and learning about different scientific laws and such had always interested me. It was kind of ironic, with me being a demigod but still liking the class. I knew that some of the stuff was just information influenced by the Mist. For example: Apollo's sun chariot versus Earth's rotation causing the sun to cross the sky. Science was always a tricky subject to parallel mythology, but it was fun nonetheless. There was a lot of new things that we were being taught that had not been in my old classes at this age.

Amy was in that class with me too, so we ended up sitting next to each other and played the "get to know you" games that were always played on the first day. By the end of class I already really likes Mrs. Davis, she had a nice sense of humor and seemed like a nice person. Science was followed up by Lunch. Percy and I met up at the table we sat at the night before and talked about what we had missed of each other's schedules. Directly after Lunch was Gym, which I found a bit odd, we still had to digest our food.

After Gym we ended up having Math together with Mrs. Williams. Mrs. Williams seemed like a nice lady, but she seemed like she was always weary, as if she was always expecting something to happen. She may have been a bit odd, but she was nice overall. Percy being in this class was a big plus, I could keep an eye on him better with the more classes we shared, and we could do homework together.

I could already tell that this class would be an interesting one right from the start too. There was a pest in the class from the very first minute. Her name was Nancy Bobofit. She had curly red hair, bright orange freckles, crooked teeth, and already had developed her own group of girls as a following. I instantly knew we would _not_ get along.

After Math was History with Miss. Steinmetz, followed up by Latin, which was taught by Dr. Ford. Percy was also in this class with me, and since I already had learned some Latin from camp. this class would be fairly easy to pass. Latin was the last class of the day so we had free time until dinner.

As the days passed I grew more accustomed to Yancy Academy. The pine trees around the school reminded me of the ones back at camp. Some days during free time I would sit under them with Percy, his roommate Grover Underwood, and occasionally Amy. She and I spent a good amount of time together also doing bracelet things. She taught me how to make multiple different types of them and I found that I was actually fairly good at them. We would hang out in our dorm at times too.

After a few times being around Grover, I grew suspicious of him. He was a bit scrawny, but tall. He would wear a Rasta Cap sometimes and sneakers, he also sported a wispy goatee. I hadn't noticed it before but he was in all of Percy's classes, and thus in a majority of mine. Grover had a note that excused him permanently from Gym class due to a muscular disorder in his legs, and he would always walk differently. I had seen enough satyrs at camp to know their gait when I saw one.

A few weeks passed with just a few rough interactions between Nancy and us. Nancy liked to pick on people, one of her favorites being Grover. Grover was an easy target for typical kids, he would cry when he got frustrated and with his "disability" he was often singled out. I would try to mediate the fights, but sometimes I just had to step in and throw a in a few jabs at Nancy to make her feel stupid and back off. I admit it, it's bad but sometimes I enjoyed that, making her feel stupid by using her own words against her, or choice words to thwart some of her haughtiness. I mean, I have been "alive" longer than her and kids like her, so it may not be fair, but they would just set themselves up. Besides, if they go around making fun of others, they open themselves up as fair game in my book. If you can dish it out you have to expect to take it.

A good number of the kids that went to this school had that similar haughty attitude about them, whether it be from how much money their family had, or their supposed "rep". I had my fair share of kids like them in my first go around so I tended to know just what to say to take them down a notch.

The way Percy and I would keep the bullies away from Grover achingly reminded me of Nick and how he would sometimes get into fights doing exactly that for others. It was memories like that more recently that made me think back on my old life more frequently. I still mourned for what I used to have, even if it came with its drawbacks, but I had my mother, Nick, Chiron, things that just.. _mattered._ That is not to say that there aren't things in this life, as I had taken to calling it, that didn't matter, but back then it just seemed more real. Some of the memories were happy though, like how Nick used to joke around, doing impressions of teachers, but others just made me feel like part of me had permanently died on that mission.

One day, midway through the week, we got a sudden change in Latin Teachers. Doctor Ford had seemed fine the day before, but then he just vanished. He was replaced by a middle-aged man in a motorized wheelchair, who wore a frayed tweed jacket, had bushy eyebrows, and thinning brown hair. What struck me most were his intense brown eyes, it was as if they could see into your very soul and had thousands of years of experience. I could recognize that man anywhere, and what it meant for the future scared me. The prospect of going back to camp suddenly scared me more, I was anxious to have that part of my life start up again. I had grown accustomed to a more mortal life in these past years. This was the man who had guided me through some of the toughest times in my life: Chiron.

The day he arrived started normally enough. Percy and I had walked into class like normal after meeting in the hallway on the path to class as was the usual. We walked in and took our seats, and after fishing out my supplies from my bag I looked up to the front of the room and froze. The blood drained from my face once I saw him. We locked eyes but I quickly broke contact, wracking my mind for any reason as to why he was suddenly here and if he recognized me. _Of course he remembers you, stupid! He's _Chiron_ for Zeus's sake._ Chiron kept sending glances in my direction as everybody filed into class, clearly shocked himself to see me. Percy noticed that something was wrong because I registered him putting his hand on my shoulder from his seat and ask,

"Something wrong, Ally? You look really pale all of a sudden."

"Uhm, no. Nothing's wrong. I just feel dizzy." I whispered back, not daring to look at the front of the room.

"Take a drink of water maybe, that usually helps me when I get dizzy." He offered, passing me his water.

"No, no. Thanks, but I'm good." I said as the bell rang and class began. Students pulled out their books and pencils, putting a stop to their conversations. Well, I take that back, there were still a select few students still talking.

"Hello class, I am Mr. Brunner. It is very nice to meet you." _Mr. Brunner, eh?_ Chiron continues on to give us directions and explain about today's lesson, as if his sudden appearance was nothing. _Well it might not be to them, the Mist and all._ For the most part I was distracted, thinking about Chiron being here and its implications. I found myself tapping my fingers on my knee and my leg bouncing up and down all throughout class. I tend to do that when I'm nervous, always have.

Once the bell rang I hurriedly gathered up my books and left the room, not even bothering to wait for Percy. This school year would be more interesting than I originally thought. If Chiron was here then that means Grover is indeed a satyr, and that he called Chiron about a demigod. A powerful one too if Chiron himself came. _They know about Percy._

The year progressed relatively well; Percy had only been called down to the Headmaster's office five times in half a year and myself only twice. Chiron got better at hiding his glances at me than he did on his first day at Yancy. I was pretty sure he didn't know that I had my memories, otherwise he would have tried to talk to me in private. I most certainly didn't try to give any indicators to that either. I did notice Grover's sudden increased interest in me after his arrival though. Hopefully Grover just thought I was a normal demigod.

I got myself into the habit of jogging around the school grounds each morning; if Chiron and a satyr were here, things were going to pick up really soon and I needed to be ready. This was just the calm before the storm, literally. Ever since December the weather started to act funny, as if the sky and sea were fighting each other. Something was going down on Olympus, something big. Mortals were even noticing the changes. We started studying how many planes were taken down in sudden squalls in the Atlantic this year. A tornado was spotted close too, just upstate form us.

Something that even further asserted my theory of something going down was us getting a new Math teacher. Apparently Mrs. Williams had a nervous breakdown or something, poor woman. Our new Math teacher was this little Math teacher from Georgia named Mrs. Dodds. She always wore this black leather jacket, even though she looked to be about fifty.

From her first day at Yancy I could sense something different about her, her aura felt somewhat familiar. I couldn't place it though, it was one I hadn't sensed in a long time though. Right off the bat she hated Percy and didn't seem to acknowledge my existence. Her punishments were harsh toward him. I got roped into them at times too, as she couldn't just ignore a student "acting out" with other faculty and students around.

I tried my best to keep Percy out of trouble around her, but they were like oil and water. I had the strong feeling that she was a monster, and a powerful one at that. If she could just suddenly appear in the school like she did and not rise suspicion or questions, like Chiron had, she had to be. What stumped me though was why she was here with Chiron so close, and if she was here for Percy, what was she waiting for? She could just attack and be done with it, get out of the danger of being so close to Chiron. It was clear though, she knew Percy was a demigod.


	7. Chapter 7: The MET

**AN 5/13/15: Hey there, so I am so happy to see people enjoying this enough to follow and even favorite it. It is really a great joy to see that, and a great motivator. I had to actually stop myself from posting another chapter a bit earlier because I want to have a relatively set posting schedule but my excitement has gotten the best of me. Thank you for the support, it really means a lot. This is kind of like the official start of the book sequence and where the story really starts to pick up, so I am pretty hyped. I did a last minute triple check on any spelling, writing, or story changes for this chapter, so hopefully any typos or things of that nature were weeded out but if you catch something please tell me and I will fix it asap. Thanks again and I hope you all had a good weekend! ****-TashaMoon**

**Note: I would say thank you to each and every one of you personally but I don't know if you would want your username listed specifically, so as note to everybody so far: Thank you very much! I hope you enjoy the rest of this. Feel free to send me any comments or pms if you wish to, but I won't bug you.**

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The storm finally started to break in May. For Latin class, Chiron was taking us to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City to see the Greek and Roman exhibits. The museum was only a few blocks away from our apartment, it was so tempting to just go home and hug Sally. Sadly though, Percy and I couldn't sneak away from the group without being expelled. We were already on the "Do not let anything happen whatsoever on this trip or risk figurative death" list.

On the ride into the city Percy, Grover and I all shared a seat. I rushed in before them so I could sit next to the window and they had filed in after me. Of course we couldn't just have a peaceful ride in though, which was an unrealistic hope on my part. What, with twenty-nine other "mental case" students onboard a tightly packed bus going into the city, something was bound to happen. Guess who it was too? Yup, Nancy Bobofit. She insisted on throwing pieces of her peanut butter and ketchup sandwich into Grover's hair.

"I'm going to kill her." Percy grumbled after what felt like the tenth piece of sandwich. He tried to stand up but Grover and I pulled him back down.

"No you won't, Percy. You heard Mr. Miller, nothing can happen on this trip." I warned him.

"It isn't worth it Percy. It's okay though, I like peanut butter." Grover said as he picked out pieces of sandwich from his curly hair. How that satyr put up with all this I will never know. A few seats behind us I heard Nancy snickering with her friends.

Chiron, or should I say Mr. Brunner, led the museum tour around the MET with Mrs. Dodds taking up the back of the group. We passed a statue of Apollo in all his "glory", which made me shudder a bit - that was not something I wanted to see. I also saw a similar statue of Hercules holding his club, the Nemean Lion's pelt draped over his shoulder. I scowled a bit, that guy just seemed like a jerk to me, killing his own family? Even if he was influenced into doing it, he still should be held accountable. Especially given how he got all of that so called glory that immortalized his name, made him a god, and eventually got him into the history books from his tasks of redemption, that just felt wrong in my book.

All the while as we were touring Chiron was giving us a running commentary about the different items, pottery, and statues we passed. I found this one particular statue of Lady Artemis to be very pretty when we passed it though, contrary to some of the other statues we saw. She was posed with her bow out and stag at her side. I caught Mrs. Dodds glaring at it too - someone was not a fan of the huntress.

Soon we came to a thirteen-foot-tall stele, a grave marker. It could instantly tell that it was for a girl about our age, she had been a half-blood, a daughter of Apollo if I was not mistaken. I got a bit annoyed at the museum for moving her grave marker, the dead had to be respected. How would you like it if your grave memorial was uprooted and put on display? By the way Chiron was looking at it I could tell she had been one of his students. That thought made me a bit sad, he must have seen so many of his young students, just children really, die at the hands of the Greek world. With a slight wince I realized that I fit that description myself. Vaguely I noticed him telling us about the carvings on the side, but my mind was drifting elsewhere.

I snapped back to the present when I heard Chiron quizzing Percy on the carvings that told the story of Kronos and the gods' rise to power. Then Nancy, of course, couldn't keep her mouth shut and not so discreetly said to one of her group,

"Like we are going to use this in real life. Like on our job descriptions they will ask us any of these useless questions. What idiot would believe in that type of thing?" _Busted_. I hid a bit of a satisfied grin. With that attitude she would be lucky to live to adulthood had she been a demigod, which she clearly was not. A kleptomaniac yes, but not a demigod, thank the gods. If I had to put up with her at camp.. well it wouldn't end well for her to say the least.

I saw Chiron, taking advantage of his superior hearing, turn a bit toward Nancy and a ask, "And why, Mr. Jackson, to paraphrase Miss. Bobofit's wonderful question, does this mater in real life?" _Are you _trying _to get him killed sooner, Chiron?_ I silently cursed at him in my head. Nancy's face was beet red but I didn't bother to relish in the moment. Could he be more obvious? In the back of the group Mrs. Dodds turned her full attention on Percy, trying to hide the satisfied look on her face. I narrowed my eyes at her but she was too busy looking at Percy to notice.

"I.. I don't know, sir." He finally replied.

"Well, Mr. Jackson, half credit." Then he looked to me. _Damn centaur._ "Ah, Miss. Cooper, what about you? Do you have an answer to the question Miss. Bobofit so generously posed?" I did my best to not make eye contact with him, ignoring Nancy trying to shuffle behind one of her group and pulled my eyes away from Mrs. Dodds as she turned to look at me.

"Well, sir, it is always useful to know your history. We wouldn't want part of the world's history to die out and be forgotten. We could also become curators or teachers, like yourself, and teach it for future generations of people to know and carry on." I said slowly, not wanting to give anything away. Chiron wore a slight disappointed frown, as if he expected a better answer from me. _As if I would give one with a monster less than twenty feet away._ How could he not notice who Mrs. Dodds really was? Either that centaur was losing it or he was deliberately trying to do something.

"A reasonable answer, but yes. Zeus did indeed feed Kronos a mixture of mustard and wine, which made him disgorge his other five children, who of course, being immortal gods, had been living and growing up completely undigested in the Titan's stomach. The gods and allies defeated their father, sliced him into pieces with his own scythe, and scattered his remains in Tartarus, the darkest part of the Underworld. On that happy note, it's time for lunch. Mrs. Dodds, would you care to lead us back outside?" I had suddenly got a sharp piercing pain in my stomach at the mention of that my grandfather, but it faded as quickly as it had come. Nobody seemed to notice my reaction aside from Chrion, who sent me a slightly concerned glance. _What does that mean? _

The class convened on the exits, the students acting like typical young middle school kids. Then, from behind us Chiron called out.

"Mr. Jackson, Miss. Cooper, would you please come here for a moment?" We parted ways with Grover and made our way back to his wheelchair.

"Sir?" I asked. I had an idea about what he might say, but you never really know with Chiron. The old horse acted very mysteriously at times. He had that intense look in his eyes that held you in your spot.

"You two must learn the answer to my question," he started.

"The one about the Titans?" Percy asked, clearly confused as Chiron had already given the answer.

"About real life, and how your studies apply to it."

"Oh."

"What you learn from me, it is vitally important. I expect you two to treat it as such. I will accept only the best from you." _Chiron, why do you want him to know so soon? Let him enjoy his life while he can._ I resisted the urge to shoot Chiron a glare as I saw Percy trying to hide his discouraged look, but he couldn't hide it from me, I could read him very well after living with him for so long, not much got past me.

"We will try harder, sir. Come on Percy, let's eat." I pulled him away and out to the seats Grover found for us at the fountain.

"Detention?" Grover asked us once we sat down and started unpacking out lunches.

"Naw, not from Brunner. I just wish he would lay off me more, I'm not a genius." I looked over at Percy and put down my juice in favor of whacking him on the shoulder.

"Ow! What was that for, Ally?" He complained, holding his hand to where I hit him, acting like a little kid again.

"Percy, you are not stupid. You are smart in your own right. Don't ever let me hear you say that again or I will hit you harder." I said with a stern look. I hated it when he got down on himself for what mortals labeled disabilities or disorders. They even had terms for them now: ADHD and dyslexia. Those are just natural demigod traits, nothing to be ashamed of. They are what help demigods live and do so much more than a mortal can. They had gotten me out of many tough situations in the past.

"Okay, okay. Fine!" I saw Grover trying to hide a laugh, and not very successfully might I add. His mouth was in a tight grin as he suppressed his laughter. I smiled a bit too, but it quickly disappeared as Nancy came up to us and decided to dump her half-eaten lunch in Grover's lap.

"Oops." She smirked, her bright orange freckles making her face look like she was sprayed with some of that fake canned cheese. Percy stood abruptly, probably to push her or something but I shot up and grabbed his shoulder, trying to make him sit back down and stepped between them. His eyes were screwed shut, his hands in fists, and the next thing I knew the bottoms of my legs were wet and Nancy was sitting on her butt in the fountain, crying out about how Percy pushed her.

Mrs. Dodds somehow turned up right behind me once I turned to look back to Percy. She had this look in her eyes that said _'I have you now!'_ The kids around us were muttering stuff about how the water had pushed her or something. _Water deity for sure._ After she made sure Nancy was alright, she turned to us.

"Now, honey."

"I know," Percy grumbled. "a month erasing workbooks." _Bad answer._ I stepped protectively in further in front of Percy.

"Jackson, follow me." Grover suddenly shot up and tried to intervene.

"Wait! It was me! I pushed Nancy!" He cried.

"I don't think so Mr. Underwood. Sit down."

"Mrs. Dodds-" I started to warn, shooting her a hard, protective look, hand on my wrist. _What I would do right now for any of my weapons._

She cut me off, "You two _will_ stay here." She had a fierce look in her eye. I reluctantly stepped aside, but I already had a plan forming in my head.

"Thanks for trying guys." Percy whispered to us as he left, stopping to stare down at Nancy on his way. Mrs. Dodds had disappeared and was now at the top of the museum steps. Once they were both out of sight Grover turned to me and said,

"Allison, you have to stay here. I'm going to get Mr. Brunner. Just don't move, promise me." He rushed.

"Sure," I said, sitting down and picking up my juice. He breathed out a sigh of relief and started trotting over to Chiron, anxiously muttering about how this was really, really bad. Once his back was turned I took advantage of the darkness the clouds were casting down on us and pulled some shadows around me, making it harder to be seen. I sprinted up the museum steps, sliding my knife out of my boot. I tore through the museum, looking for any signs of the two but came up with nothing. _The Greek and Roman section! _I rushed over to the exhibits and found Percy with Mrs. Dodds standing before a big marble frieze of the gods. Mrs. Dodds was growling lowly at the frieze, as if she wanted to destroy it, which in retrospect, she probably did.

"You have been giving us problems, honey." She was saying.

Percy visibly gulped and went with what he probably thought was the safe thing to say. "Yes ma'am."

"Did you really think you would get away with it?" Mrs. Dodds yelled angrily, tugging on the cuffs of her leather jacket. I slid along the wall, behind some displays. I made sure to keep the shadows pulled tight around me as I made my way closer to Percy, nervously turning my blade around in my hand.

Mrs. Dodds had that evil monster look in her eye that I had seen on countless monsters before, and the one she reserved for Percy whenever he was in trouble, but this time it was amplified, more feral. I absently tugged at one of the bracelets Amy had made me on my wrist, old battle habits coming back into play. I really needed an actual weapon right about now. I darted from one of the displays and dove behind a podium displaying a large pot, gradually getting in closer. I didn't let anything happen to Nick and I sure as heck wouldn't let anything happen to Percy at the hands of a monster if I could help it. Images of my last battle flashed through my head. Where the heck was Chiron anyways? He should be here by now if Grover went to get him, centaurs are fast. He had better have a weapon too, otherwise I would beat the heck out of him if we made it through this, Chiron or not.

"I'll.. I'll try harder, ma'am." Percy said with a small voice. A clap of thunder boomed outside, my uncle was not happy.

"We are not fools!" Mrs. Dodds voice was increasing in volume. "It was only a matter of time before we found _you_ out. Confess and you will suffer less pain." _Confess? _What the heck did _they_ think he do? By now I was hiding behind the interior most display, the display of Artemis from before that was slightly behind Mrs. Dodds. Percy stayed silent, not knowing what to say. I got ready to jump into action, preparing my grip on my knife and letting out a deep breath. Steel may not work on monsters but my plan just might buy us some time until Chiron got here.

"Well?" Mrs. Dodds demanded.

"Ma'am, I don't.."

"Your time is up." She hissed. Her eyes glowed like lit coals, her fingers stretching out into talons. Her jacket melted into large, leathery wings. She looked like a shriveled up hag with bat wings and pointy yellow fangs. _Alecto, just my freaking luck. No wonder her aura felt familiar, Underworld._ My chances of getting us out of here un-scathed just diminished drastically.

"Hey Ugly!" I yelled as I dove from my hiding spot. "Percy run! Get Mr. Brunner!" I yelled as I threw my knife. Mrs. Dodds whirled around to face me as I expected and got nailed in the face with my knife. It may have not cut into her but the weight alone could distract her and focus her attention onto me. She let out a slightly shocked and angry sound when it hit too, it was kind of satisfying.

"RUN!" I yelled again. He jolted out of his shock as I tackled Alecto. My focus was entirely on not being skewered or shredded by Alecto's talons as I snatched my knife and started beating her with the hilt, scrambling away whenever she tried to get a hold on me.

"Despicable child! An escaped soul, eh? I will enjoy this. I don't know how I didn't realize it sooner." She rasped out. _Oh crud._ She somehow twisted my arm behind my back, pushing me face first into the floor and knocked my knife away, then grabbed me by my neck. She stood up to her full height and held me just far enough away so I couldn't kick her easily.

My hands grasped at hers, trying to free myself. I couldn't get any air. I flailed around desperately trying to land a kick or stun her somehow. I tried to swing my legs up to knock her arm or wrap around it but she jerked me sideways. Nothing was working. I played one of my most desperate cards: I called on the shadows to try to solidify and cut her hands to release me. The only thing that happened though was the room getting darker and some of my energy draining. I hadn't even managed to master that in my first life, and I didn't have enough practice yet to make it work now. I had only gotten it to work a select few times, and that was with luck. I couldn't shadow travel away from her if she was an Underworld creature of her magnitude with me in her grasp.

"Did you think you could escape so easily?" She taunted.

"Go to Tartarus Alecto!" I hissed out. Not a wise way to conserve breath but it felt good. Then I heard a familiar: "What ho, Percy!" from somewhere I couldn't see. The next thing I knew a blade ripped through Alecto, making her let out one last dying screech. She then exploded like sand in an industrial fan. I fell to the floor, coughing and swatting away monster dust from my face.

"Allison!" I heard Percy say frantically as he knelt down beside me, helping brush the monster dust off. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, thanks for the save. Where did you get that sword?" I asked, sitting up. There was the glowing blade of the celestial bronze sword on the ground next to me.

"I don't know, Mr. Brunner just came in and threw me a pen, then it was this." He shrugged helplessly. "What was that anyways? Mrs. Dodds just like, went rabid! She was some kind of monster or something. You were here though and you had a knife and attacked her. I always knew she wasn't human..." Then with a moment of realization he asked, "Wait a minute Ally, where did you get this knife?" He asked as he picked it up from where it had fallen. He gave me a stern look, like he was trying to be the responsible "older sibling".

"I don't- I just- Okay, look," My mind was frantically trying to come up with a liable reason, I couldn't just tell the truth as to why I've been carrying around a big hunting knife for years now. He saw everything though, so I couldn't just hide it anymore. "Um, I got it to have in case something happened? You never know when something will happen in the city, I had it to protect myself." I said nervously.

Percy gave me a skeptical look, "How did you even get this into a museum, or school? Wait, does mom know?"

My eyes widened, thinking of what Sally might do if she knew I had been carrying around that thing for so long right under her nose.

"No.." I cautioned. Percy sighed a bit but then his face broke out into a grin.

"This thing is awesome though." He said, admiring the knife. "It came in handy at least.. for whatever today was.." He frowned and handed me back my knife. I slipped it back into my boot as Percy stood, collecting the sword-now-pen. He held out his hand and I took it, pulling myself up out of the monster dust, brushing off any remains from my person.

"That was the sword Mr. Brunner has on tournament days. Was I just imagining that?" He asked, examining the pen.

"I don't know, let's go back outside though, this place is giving me the creeps." The room had grown colder and the sound of the rain hitting the museum roof echoed through the room. I pulled his arm a bit for him to follow as I started making my way back to the main doors.

Once we got outside and down the steps we headed over to Grover through the onslaught of water. _Someone's grumpy,_ I thought sarcastically as I glanced at the sky. Grover saw us coming his way and a relieved but nervous look passed over his face, but he quickly covered it. I sat down by my abandoned lunch, elbows on knees and head resting in my hands and I ran a hand through my hair, letting out a long breath. Percy lingered a little ways away, looking at Chiron as if debating going over there. My neck was a bit sore from Alecto, but I acted as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened, at least for now.

"Allison, you're back!" Grover said relieved but still trying to act normal.

"Grover, I just went to the bathroom." I replied coolly. _Two can play at that game. _

"Oh, yeah. Of course." He said, but I still picked up on his undertone of anxiousness, only aided by the fact that he was playing with his hands a bit. We sat in silence until Percy made his way over to us, but before he could even talk Nancy came up with two of her friends, sneering.

"I hope Mrs. Kerr whipped your butt."

"Wait, who?" Percy questioned. _And that my friend would be the Mist._

"Our teacher. Duh!" Percy had a beyond confused look on his face. Nancy just huffed and turned away, her friends flanking her as she went back to wherever she came from, still dripping wet. The rain did her no favors, some mascara was smudged by her eyes a bit from the water but I refrained from laughing. I don't know why anybody would want to, or feel the need to wear make-up at this age. She probably stole it anyway from one of the older girls in the school as this was something new.

Percy turned back around and asked about Mrs. Dodds but Grover just put on a blank face.

"Who?" He paused first though, and couldn't meet our eyes. That was his key mistake. Percy was not amused in the least. He just fingered the pen and with a bit of a huff went over to Chiron.

"You know, you are a terrible liar Grover. You have to work on that." I said as I picked up the remains of my juice and took a sip nonchalantly. Grover flinched, eyes wide. I looked to where Percy and Chiron were. I could see them having a brief conversation, then Chiron gestured to the pen and Percy handed it over, albeit reluctantly. _Well, there goes my one advantage._

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**Feel free to comment, it helps a ton! All feedback always makes my day so much better :)**


	8. Chapter 8: The Fates

**AN 5/16/15: Hey so I hope you enjoyed that last chapter, first taste of battle in this era. I'm glad you found no spelling errors Paper Kaine, I am always paranoid about those, haha. Hopefully this doesn't have any either, I even read it aloud to myself as a check. Anyway, thanks for the continued support to all who have been reading this, or are reading it for the first time. I will probably release the next chapter a about mid-week next week as this is a bit of a shorter chapter compared to the rest, just about 2.6k ish. Hope you all had a good week so far and are enjoying the weekend!**

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For the rest of the school year Percy was determined to catch somebody slipping up about "lying" about Mrs. Dodds' existence. I knew better than to even try, the Mist was a powerful thing. Percy managed to pull me into a number of lengthy conversation about what had happened at the museum. I did my best to keep him from realizing who he was while still trying to keep him sane, but that was easier said than done. I had to act like I knew nothing, but I knew the time for camp was rapidly approaching. If a Fury came after us, questioning Percy about something missing, then something big was going down.

I was a bit ticked off though, the Furies were servants of my father, but Mrs. Dodds had paid no mind to me all year, and didn't stop trying to kill at the museum. She didn't even recognize me. It made me question if I still had any influence as a child of Hades, and how she hadn't noticed me all year, even just as an "escaped soul". Was I just some kind of echo of my former self? It really felt like that at times, being stuck thinking in the past and then this. I doubted that my father didn't know I was not down in the Underworld where I was supposed to be.

I knew Percy was having nightmares about what happened, and I was too honestly, but mine were more from fear of the future. There were so many horrible things that could happen now that things were picking up again. Zeus was really not happy about something, the weird weather only grew worse. There were bad thunder storms, and just a few days ago the biggest tornado ever spotted in the Hudson Valley touched down just fifty miles from the school. On the night of one particular thunderstorm one of the windows in the boy's room was blown out.

Percy was getting in more trouble than usual, his grades were slipping and he was getting into more fights. I found myself having to jump in more and more frequently. Our final straw though was when Percy called Mr. Nicoll an old sot, but the guy really had it coming. He kept nagging Percy about his dyslexia, blaming his bad grades in spelling tests on apparent laziness. I half expected to see steam coming out of his ears like in the cartoons after that event.

The headmaster, Mr. Miller, sent Sally a letter the following week making it official: we would not be welcomed back to Yancy Academy for the following year. Apparently he was fed-up with us "causing so much trouble and so many disruptions". I felt a bit sad about that choice though, I would really miss Mrs. Davis and Amy. I had grown closer to both of them, I would even eat lunch with Mrs. Davis some days. It would have been doubly hard for Percy though, being kicked out of basically every school we went to. I knew the reasons but to him it must have felt like he was the main problem, that nobody wanted him. He had really connected with Grover and Chiron, but I was sure he would see them again sooner than he expected.

Chiron kept dropping hints and making it too obvious that knowing Greek Mythology was the difference between life and death for us. I was getting pretty annoyed at him for that. He kept pushing Percy to find out when he should be letting him enjoy his ignorance. Once you came into the Greek world, there was no going back.

It was the end of our three-hour Latin exam on the last day of classes that I had to stop myself from giving myself away and snapping at him. I was still finishing up my test, trying to make it look like I was having trouble with the answers when Percy got up to hand in his test when I heard it. I knew Chiron had tried to keep their conversation between the two of them, but he had failed miserably.

"Percy, don't be discouraged about leaving Yancy. It's.. it is for the best." I set down my pencil at that, staring at him. I couldn't believe him at that moment, there were still kids finishing the exam and they could hear all of it, Nancy included. I caught her making sarcastic kissing motions at Percy and chucked my eraser at her. It nailed her in the back of the head and she turned around to me but I just shot her a glare. Chiron was trying to be reassuring and kind to Percy but he had really, really bad timing for someone who was alive for thousands of years. I would have thought he would have that mastered by now with his age.

"Okay, sir." Percy mumbled.

"I mean.." Chiron was rocking his wheelchair back and forth, trying to decide what to say next.

"This isn't the right place for you. It was only a matter of time." I hit my forehead. _You are wonderful with words, oh mighty Chiron. _I saw Percy trying to keep his cool, his hands clenched at his sides.

"Right," His voice shaky.

"No, no. Oh confound it all. What I'm trying to say.. you're not normal, Percy. That's nothing to be-"

"Thanks. Thanks a lot, sir, for reminding me." Percy cut him off and left the room. Chiron tried to call to him but he was too late. I stood up, not bothering to finish my edits and walked up to the front of the room. I made sure to hit Nancy with the booklet to stop her snickers on my way up, receiving an indignant "Hey!" from her for my efforts. I placed my booklet on Chiron's desk. He was watching me with those eyes. I knew he wanted to talk with me but before he could say anything I left with a passing, "_Smooth" _to make it clear that I was not happy with him. I wanted to say more but that would be a no-go. As it was that one word already indicated more than was preferable, but I was just so ticked off at him.

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The next day I packed up all my stuff, exchanged contact information and some farewell bracelets with Amy, and left to catch the bus. Amy had been a good roommate and friend, she had even gotten me hooked on bracelet making. I wouldn't mind keeping in touch with her. I wasn't all too surprised when Grover boarded the same bus as Percy and I. I had been expecting nothing less. The whole ride he spent looking around nervously, watching all the passengers and windows.

"Looking for Kindly Ones?" Percy finally broke the silence. I nearly jumped alongside Grover.

"Wha-what do you mean?" He stuttered. I listened as Percy confessed about eaves dropping on him and Chiron the other night.

"How much did you hear?" Grover's eye twitched. _Such a bad liar._

"Oh.. not much. What's the summer solstice deadline?" My ears perked up at this as Grover flinched.

"Look, Percy.. I was just worried, see? I mean, hallucinating about demon math teachers.." Percy tried to cut him off but he kept on going. "And I was telling Mr. Brunner that maybe you were overstressed or something, because there was no such person as Mrs. Dodds and.."

"Grover, you are a really, really bad liar." I held myself back from agreeing with Percy aloud.

Grover's ears turned pink. From his shirt pocket he pulled out a pair of worn business cards.

"Just take these, okay you two? In case you need me this summer." The business card was just what I was expecting it to be, Camp Half-Blood. The writing was in cursive, which luckily was relatively easy to read, as my old teachers would always write in it when I first grew up. I hid a sad smile as Grover cut Percy off from asking about the card.

"Don't say it aloud! That's my, um.. summer address." _Nice save Grover.._

"Okay," Percy said, a slightly downtrodden look on his face. "So, like, if we want to visit your mansion or something.."

"Or.. or if you need me."

"Why would we need you?" He asked and I quickly slapped his shoulder. "Percy, not nice! Who knows, we might want to hang out, or need him at some point or something." Grover was blushing big time, fiddling with his hands.

"Look, the truth is, I-I kind of have to protect you. You too Allison." Percy just stared at him, and I could see why. All year we had gotten into fights keeping the bullies away from him.

"Grover, what are you protecting us from?" _You don't even want to begin to know. _Just as he said that there was a huge grinding noise and black smoke poured from the dashboard. The whole bus started smelling. I found my hand had flinched down to my boot, where my knife was - immediately on guard. The driver dragged the bus over to the side of the highway and told us to get out after a few minutes of shuffling around in the engine compartment.

We were stopped on a peaceful stretch of country, aside from the highway that is. On our side there were nothing but maple trees and litter from passing drivers. On the other side of the highway was an old-fashioned fruit stand. Once I saw that stand I got a pit in my stomach and tried to pull Percy away from view.

At the stand were three old ladies sitting in rocking chairs. That may not have been a bad thing, had they not been knitting a giant pair of electric-blue socks. The ladies each had their own job in making them. The lady on the right, Clotho, knitted one sock, Lachesis on the left the other. The one in the center held the basket of yarn. The Moirai looked extremely old, like they had seen countless lives come and go, which they had. They were looking right at Percy and I. I froze, trapped in their gaze. Grover was frozen too, all the blood draining from his face. The aura they gave off was one of ancientness and power.

"Grover? Hey, man-"

"Tell me they're not looking at you two. They are, aren't they?"

"Yeah. Weird, huh? You think those socks would fit us?" I was incredulous at the causal air of his remark, like this was nothing. How could he joke about something like this? They never just appeared for no reason.

"Not funny, Percy. Not funny at all." The old lady in the middle, better known as Atropos, the cutter of the life cord, took out a long pair of scissors-gold and silver, long bladed. I felt the connection the yarn had to life immediately.

I grew stiffer once I saw the second knitting project of theirs. The yarn was a deep purple. The length of yarn from it on Atropos' lap looked very frayed and worn, a patchwork almost. Like it had been mangled. I instantly knew this thread represented me, my life. My eyes zeroed in on the broken area. _That must have been my death.. they patched it. _That was the only clear thought I could manage at the time. They wouldn't show themselves just to announce a simple cutting of the cord. It was a warning, something big, very big was about to happen that ended in death, an important one. This was like the prelude to all hell breaking loose.

"We're getting on the bus," Grove told us, trying to pull us to the doors. "Come on."

"What? It's like a thousand degrees in there." But my feet were grounded.

I watched as Atropos went to cut the cord, sending me a meaningful look. As I met her eyes images of my past life flashed before my eyes. Memories from my childhood before I knew I was a demigod, ones of me with my mother and Nick. The night we found out and all the way up to that last day. I heard those last words I had ever heard from that life ringing in my head, "I'm not done with you either, you will not be forgotten. Until next time Allison, I will wait."

I felt that same strong sense of my job not being done as I had felt back then. I was numb. Flashes of this life passed through more rapidly. Then I saw flashes of stuff I had yet to see. A scythe that radiated power, images of battles, then those powerful, dangerous golden eyes and voice I had heard so long ago. I felt a sense of dread, the sense of death that accompanied those eyes overwhelming. I stumbled a bit as I came back to the present, back to standing before the three Fates. Grover caught my arm, holding me steady. I heard the snip of the cord being cut across four lanes of traffic, like a door being sealed shut and I could swear I saw a flash of gold eyes turn to blue. _Chester? _I looked back into the eyes of Atropos, her staring right back with those eyes.

I realized that I had goose-bumps and was shivering in a cold sweat. Grover managed to pull Percy and I back into the bus. The feeling of foreboding growing stronger. We were sitting back in our seats, the bus driver had gotten the bus back up and running, the rest of the passengers boarding. I noticed that Percy wasn't doing too well himself, nor was Grover, his teeth were chattering. I needed to talk with Chiron, desperately.

"Grover?"

"Yeah?"

"What are you not telling us?"

"What did you see back at the fruit stand?" Grover demanded as he dabbed his forehead with his shirt sleeve. I tried to focus on the ambient sound of the bus rattling along down the highway, the movement of the bus and hum of the motor. To focus on anything else besides what had just happened and what seeing those images brought up.

"You mean the old ladies? What is it about them? They're not like.. Mrs. Dodds, are they?" _Worse. _I had to stop myself from giving Percy a look. Grover had a deadly serious expression on his face, one that I had only seen him use on chance occasions.

"Tell me what you saw."

"The middle one took our her scissors, and she cut the yarn." Grover closed his eyes and made a warding off evil gesture.

"You saw her snip the cord."

"Yeah. So?" But he didn't sound sure.

"Grover, trouble is coming, and we are at the center of it." I said which probably came out as ominous, but I felt like I had to say it. Grover just looked at me, as if questioning how much I knew. Then he turned away and started mumbling to himself, saying stuff like how this couldn't be happening again and how it can't be like the last time, eyes wide and frightened. I was in the same boat as him. Why couldn't I just have a regular demigod life?

Percy nervously asked about what Grover was muttering about but he just kept on going, not giving away any more information. Then he suddenly looked up and begged us to let him walk us home from the bus station. Percy promised for both of us. My mind was off running over what I had seen over and over again. Did this have a connection to me being here now, in this life? It had to be, I was sure of it. I needed to talk to Chiron, to drop the act and find out what the heck was going on. I needed my father figure back too, I had spent long enough without him.

"Grover-that cutting of the yarn, does that mean somebody is going to die?" Grover looked at us mournfully, like he was already planning our shrouds.

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**This is one of my favorite chapters with what I've done with it in terms of the Fates and the other piece of knitting. Any suggestions, comments, or reviews are always welcomed! Thanks!**


	9. Chapter 9: Meet the Pig

**AN 5/23/15: Hey so busy week, lots of things happened so remembering to post this fell to the side, as compensation I will post this chapter and the next today. **

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Once we got to our stop Grover rushed into the bathroom, leaving Percy and I to wait out front.

"Come on, let's go." Percy said suddenly once Grover was out of sight, grabbing his bag.

"Percy, what are you doing? We have to wait for Grover."

"Yeah, I know, but he is really freaking me out. Like, a lot. Look, let's just go home? Please?"  
He begged. After having to look at those baby seal eyes for a solid minute I relented. I knew he wouldn't give up until I agreed. It was better that I went with him than him go alone. We hailed a taxi and made our way back to the apartment.

Once we arrived home we opened the door to find ourselves stepping into the center of one of Gabe's poker parties with some of his smelly friends, if you could even call them that. ESPN was blaring and chips and beer cans were littered everywhere. I wrinkled my nose in disgust at the men. I had made a promise to myself a while back that I would make sure he got what he deserved once he died. He was horrible to Sally and was a complete jerk to Percy. I personally tended to just try to stay out of the way and try not to be noticed, but Gabe was a jerk through and through. Artemis and her hunters would have a field day with him.

He glanced up from his cards, and talking around his cigar he said, "So, you're home."

"Where's our mom?" Percy asked, taking in the scene around him.

"Working, got any cash?" _Pig._ That was all he had to say after Percy and I returned from being away for months. He was looking more and more like an actual pig as the years went by too. Just from Christmas break he had put on a lot of weight. He wore cheap, filthy clothes and had almost no hair on his greasy head.

All that man did was collect paychecks and spend money on cigars, gambling, and beer. He wouldn't last a day if he had that mentality in the time I grew up in, he would starve within his first two weeks. Growing up in the Great Depression really shaped me. My mother and I had been fortunate enough for her to have a small job and the majority of the rest of our key expenses paid off by my Father, which I only found out later in life. But having lived in the Dust Bowl, things were just that much harder to get than other places at the time. We had to live sparingly. A lot of the time people had to leave town and move around, finding Hoovervilles to live in temporarily on their search for work. We were fortunate, others were not as lucky. I had to stop myself multiple times in the past from snapping at him. This was one of those times.

"We don't have any cash," Percy told him and he tried to lead us away. Gabe stopped us though, he was giving us a skeptical look. _As if he could actually be capable of normal brain functions in the first place._ But sniffing out money was his thing.

"Took a cab from the bus station, paid with a twenty or so. Got six, seven bucks in change. Somebody expects to live under this roof, they ought to carry their own weight. Am I right Eddie?"

Eddie was the super of our apartment building. He might be one of Gabe's buddies, but he looked at us with a bit of sympathy. "Come on, Gabe. The kids just got here."

"Am I _right?_" Gabe repeated, looking to his other companions for agreement. Eddie just scowled into his snack bowl as the two other men passed gas in harmony. _Disgusting._ Gabe had not so subtly made it clear that we were supposed to provide some of his gambling funds, "or else" a few years back. He did mainly say it to Percy, but I was included in there too. If I ever saw that man lay a finger on Sally or Percy, he would be begging for death. He already had it coming to him once he entered my father's domain.

"Come on, Percy. Let's go." I insisted as I pulled him away. I grabbed the change from the cab ride and smacked it down onto the table as we passed. Percy threw in a "Hope you lose." on his way too.

"I wouldn't be acting so snooty," Gabe shouted after us. "Your report card came in, brain boy! And you wouldn't even be here if I had the choice, girl! 'S bad enough with one brat in the house."

Percy slammed the door shut as I set my bag down beside my bed. I pushed aside the boxes and old newspapers that were littered on the blanket and laid down turned to the wall, eyes closed, slowly turning a bracelet around on my wrist in thought. I heard Percy set down his stuff and sit on his bed. The tension in the air was strong, it was as if we were being watched. The air seemed to grow colder and I pulled up the sides of my blanket to cover me. The recent events were all swimming in my mind. Alecto, the summer solstice deadline, the Fates. What did it all mean? What was happening on Olympus that I didn't know about, and what were the Fates warning me about?

"Percy? Allison?" I heard Sally call through the door, then I heard her open it a second later.

"Oh, I can't believe it." She said after a moment of what I assumed to be her surveying the room. "You've grown so much since Christmas!" She walked across the room, taking a moment to brush some hair out of my face and give my shoulder a slight squeeze. I caught a whiff of her as she walked by, the odor of chocolate, licorice, and other delicious candies still clinging to her. I heard her sit down on the bed, the creak as Percy scooted over to give her a better place to sit. I was still fiddling with one of my bracelets - the old habit has never left me.

Sally I knew could tell I was in one of my quiet, thinking moods just by one look, so she took the opportunity to catch up with Percy in the mean time. I heard a slight ruffling of a bag and Percy exclaim, "Candy!" and I had to smile. He was still such a kid sometimes, but he was after all just twelve. Sally asked him about how we were, how the ride was, etcetera.

The happy reunion moment was broken by Gabe yelling, "Hey, Sally-how 'bout some bean dip, huh?" I rolled over more, clutching the covers to stop myself from getting up and going at him. I was silently getting angrier and angrier at him. Sally was one of the nicest people I have ever met, she didn't deserve to cater to a pig like Gabe, or cater to anyone at all. But that was just the reason why she felt she had to, she was doing it to protect me and Percy. I thought back to all the times I had plotted to make misfortunate things happen to him, smiling slightly at the memories. They were a nice distraction.

Percy picked up the conversation again, noticeably trying to keep it more upbeat, smoothing over some of our stories. Then the museum came up.

"What? " Sally asked. "Did something scare you?" I held my breath in anticipation.

"No, Mom." I knew Percy never liked lying to her, but telling her the truth would just worry her so much more. My thoughts traced back to Grover, how he must be panicking now that we had vanished. Sally and Percy were talking about going to Montauk. I liked going there myself, but the ocean wasn't for me. That was more Percy's speed.

I heard somebody with heavy, loping steps coming down the hallway and into the doorway. I knew what was about to happen.

"Bean dip, Sally? Didn't you hear me?" Gabe growled. I turned and glanced over at Percy and Sally for the first time to see Percy visibly trying to restrain himself, at least to the knowing eye. Sally's eyes were warning him not to do anything stupid.

"I was on my way, honey. We were just talking about the trip."

"The trip? You mean you were serious about that thing?" Gabe questioned, eyes narrowed.

"He won't let us go, I knew it." Percy muttered. Sally made an excuse to calm Percy down and negotiated the trip. Gabe wanted an apology from Percy and I for interrupting his poker game. _Fat chance in hell._ Just by the look on Percy's face I could tell he was having similar thoughts.

"I'm sorry," he finally muttered. "I'm really sorry for interrupting your incredibly important, life altering poker game. Please, go back to it right now." The part about him getting his smelly self out of our faces sadly left unsaid. I turned my head back over and closed my eyes, shutting Gabe out.

"Well?" He promoted. I just stayed there, pretending to not be paying attention. It was better than what I was stopping myself from doing to him.

"Gabe, she's tired. Let her rest." Sally covered. I felt bad for causing her more grief like that but there was no way that man was getting an apology from me, as it was I wanted to turn around and hurl my knife at him.

"The girl is always tired, all she does is take up space and waste money. You should have just left her, Sally, so we wouldn't have to deal with her. One is bad enough." Gabe grumbled and walked off, back to his poker party. I turned sharply and made a grab for my knife but stopped myself at the last moment, tensely unclenching my fingers. It would be so easy just to use it, he didn't yet know how dangerous a daughter of Hades could be when she wanted to be.

I noticed Percy's eyes widen slightly upon seeing the motion. Sally would freak if she saw it, it wouldn't get us very far with Gabe at the moment either. _You just perfectly described yourself, you waste._ My knuckles were white but I knew Sally didn't share the same thoughts as him. She was the one who took me in when I woke up, I had been left here for a reason. The meeting with the Fates earlier just further reinforced that. Luckily, Sally didn't catch the move, she was looking out the door where Gabe used to be.

"Thank you, Percy." She said. Then she got up and walked over to me. "You and Percy are worth the world to me." She gave me a tight hug and walked to the door. "Once we get to Montauk, we'll talk more about.. whatever you've forgotten to tell me, okay?" There was hidden anxiety to her voice, she knew something was up. She left the room, closing the door softly as she went.

After a moment of silence Percy spoke up, "I bet Gabe couldn't even tell a prune from an M&amp;M." I appreciated the effort, but I decided that I needed to re-pack my bags for the shorter stay at Montauk. I had a feeling that I needed to pack to be ready to move too. A gut instinct that trouble was on its way.

Once I had packed everything I would need as if I were going on a quest in a dark backpack (better for my type of camouflage) an hour had passed. I had spent my time packing picking at the candy Sally brought us and thinking about events. Percy was already packed so we headed out the door.

"Not a scratch on this car, brain boy." Gabe warned from the steps by the screen door. "Not one little scratch." Percy closed the trunk and opened the car door. Gabe walked back toward the building and I saw Percy make the warding off evil gesture Grover used earlier on the bus, accompanied by a shoving motion toward Gabe. The screen door slammed shut, launching him miraculously up the staircase inside. Who knew a screen door could launch a man that size so far? I laughed as Percy rushed into the car, quickly closing the door and telling Sally to get us out of there.


	10. Chapter 10: The Minotaur

**AN 5/23/15: Hey so quick question I have been curious about for a bit now: How did you come across this story? If it was the main PJATO recent story updates page or a search or anything, let me know. **

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We arrived at the rental cabin and unloaded at around sunset. The cabin was on the South shore of Long Island, by the tip. It was quaint little pastel box with faded curtains half sunken into the dunes. Sand and spiders were always present in the cabin but they didn't do any harm to us, though an Athena kid might fare differently. Most of the time the sea was too cold to swim in, but I was fine with that. No swimming for me. I knew Sally had been coming up here for years. I had assumed since the first time I was up here that this is where she met Percy's father. She had seemed to grow younger and younger every time we got closer to the cabin on the rides up here, the worry fading from her features. This time was no different.

We went through our usual cleaning routine and walked along the beach, feeding blue corn chips to the seagulls and ate a bunch of other blue treats. Sally and Percy had a thing for blue, it was just a little thing of theirs that I found pretty cute. On our walk I collected different seashells that were far enough away from the water to be safe for me. Once year I had even found some purple sea glass, I still have it in my room.

When it got dark we made a fire and roasted hot dogs and marshmallows. It had been a while since I roasted marshmallows at a camp fire that wasn't up here. Nick would always stuff as many of them as he could in his mouth and then end up jumping around, fanning his mouth saying how hot they were. _He was such a goof._

Sally told us stories from when she was a kid, before her parents died, and about the book she wanted to write someday, once we had enough money for her to quit the candy shop that is. More than once up here I had wanted to share some different stories from when I had first grown up with them, but of course I couldn't. Eventually Percy asked about what he always did up here, his father. I just sat there quietly toasting some marshmallows while they talked about him. Then the topic came up, Poseidon had actually mentioned camp to Sally. It made me wonder just how much she actually knew about our world, aside from the monsters. I had always been pretty good at hiding any signs of me being a demigod, but she was vigilant, especially if she already knew what to look for.

"So you're going to send us away again?" Percy asked her. "To some place you have only ever heard of?" _Don't do this to her Percy.. _ I silently pleaded with my eyes, but his eyes were on Sally.

"I don't know honey." Her voice was heavy. "I think.. I think we'll have to do something."

"Because you don't want us around?" _Ouch._ I actually winced. The look on Percy's face immediately after he told me that he regretted saying that. Sally's eyes welled with tears. She held our hands and squeezed them tight. "Oh, Percy, Allison, no. I-I have to. For your own good. I have to send you away."

"Because we're not normal." Percy said solemnly.

"You say that like it's a bad thing, Percy. But you don't realize how important you are. And Allison, from the first moment I saw you I knew you were different too, just like Percy. I thought Yancy Academy would be far enough away. I thought you would finally be safe."

"Safe from what?" She met his eyes, as if urging him to remember all of the monster related things that have ever happened to us.

"I tried to keep you two as close to me as I could. They told me that was a mistake. But the camp is the only other option. But I just.. I just can't stand to do it." Percy started to ask more but Sally's expression made him stop. She looked like she would start crying for real if we continued the conversation.

The night I had a vivid dream: I was on a cliff by the ocean and it was storming. The waves were pounding against the cliff face in massive swells and the sky was lit up with lightning. Zeus and Poseidon were sure angry with each other. I looked down to see I was trapped in celestial bronze chains.

_"Ahh, the child of Hades. So young, yet not quite. You are interesting indeed. You will be of use to my cause yet. Watch as the gods fight between themselves in petty squabbles, mortals and demigods alike caught in the crossfire." _I looked to the ocean and saw two men fighting to the death. One had a blue aura, the other green. With each strike of the blue-one thunder would boom and lightning would streak across the sky. Each time the green-man countered or went in for a hit the ocean would pound yet again against the rocks, the ocean spray rising above the cliff edge. Zeus and Poseidon.

Then I saw Percy standing further down the cliffs. I tried to call out to him but no sound came. I struggled to get free of the chains surrounding me, I had to get to Percy.

_"Do you think that you can save everyone, Miss. Cooper? Hah, that is a fool's ploy._" I saw Percy's figure trying to run against the wind that was whipping onto the land from the vast expanse of ocean ahead, trying to stop the fight. I desperately tried to get to them but the voice had me trapped. It was the same voice I had heard the night of my first day of school, and the one from the Fates: the memories coming back to me full force. I could never forget that voice even if I tried. The ground rumbled and the voice goaded the brothers into fighting more, urging them to kill. Then all of a sudden a golden light enveloped Percy and the ground split open under him. I tried to run to him but the chains cut into me. He fell into the pit and I screamed for him. It was one of my worst fears: losing somebody that close to me again. The ancient voice just laughed harder..

I woke up to somebody shaking me. I rolled off the bed and landed in a crouch, breathing heavily, looking around wildly for attackers.

"Whoa, Allison it's just me! But quick, we have to go! Something's after us. Something really bad. Bring your knife." He lowered his voice at the last part. "Grover is here, but he isn't Grover exactly. He is part donkey or something! But we have to go, like now!" The storm from my dream was outside, the wind frothing up the waves and spraying up sand violently, lightning crackling across the sky. Then I heard it, a long, angry, tortured bellowing. It was like a roar. That sound felt familiar to me. The hair on my arms stood on end, things had just gotten worse than I had hoped. I quickly grabbed my backpack from under my bed, taking my knife out of its hiding place and tucked it into my waistband. I grabbed my jacket as we ran out to the car to meet up with Sally and Grover.

We tore through the night along dark country roads. Wind slammed the Camaro as rain lashed the windshield. I didn't know if Sally could see through the darkness and rain but she kept on driving, never taking her foot off the gas. Percy kept sneaking glances at Grover, a look of disbelief on his face.

"So, you and my mom.. know each other?" _That.. of all things, is all you can think of to say right now Percy? Wonderful._

"Not exactly," Grover said, casting a nervous glance around into the wall of darkness that surrounded the car. "I mean, we've never met in person, but she knew I was watching you, you too Allison, after a while." I kept looking back to see any signs of the monster on our tail, trying to form a plan. There! A flutter of movement a ways back on the road.

"Watching us? Like how you said you had to protect us or something on the bus?"

"Yeah, keeping tabs on you. Making sure you were okay. But I wasn't faking being your friend," he added hastily. "I _am_ your guys' friend."

"Urm.. what _are_ you, exactly?"

"Percy, does that really matter right now? He is still Grover, and we have more pressing things to worry about besides Grover's hairy legs."

"Hey!" He protested and Percy grinned a bit despite the situation.

"It doesn't really matter though? From the waist down, I just find out now that my best friend is a donkey-"

Grover let out an indignant bleat. "Goat!" He cried.

"What?"

"I am a _goat_ from the waist down."

"How come I haven't noticed until now? And you just said it didn't matter."

"_Blaa-ha-ha!_ There are satyrs who would trample you underhoof for an insult like that!"

"Whoa, wait. Satyrs. You mean like.. in Mr. Brunner's myths?"

"Were those old ladies at the fruit stand a _myth_, Percy? Was Mrs. Dodds just a _myth?_ " Grover was really losing his cool. I glanced back again nervously and saw the silhouette of a big, bulky, _thing_ further down the road and it was approaching fast. _This had better not be who I think it is. The last time we had to deal with him was hard enough, and we had actual weapons and more people then. _I then saw the telltale horns.

"So you _admit_ there was a Mrs. Dodds!" Percy yelled in triumph.

"Percy! Again, does that really matter right now? We are being chased by a big monster and all you can think about is proving a point?"

"But why-"

"Look, the less you knew, the fewer monsters you'd attract." Grover said, like it should be obvious, but to someone like Percy it was far from it. Grover really needed to work on his skills on breaking the news to new half-bloods. "We put Mist over the human's eyes. We hoped you'd think the Kindly One was a hallucination. But it was no good, you two started realizing who you were." _Oh really now?_

"Percy, Allison," Sally finally interrupted. "There is too much to explain and not enough time. We have to get you two to safety."

"Safety from what? Who is after us? Some monster Allison mentioned?"

"Oh, nobody much," Grover snapped, clearly still miffed about the donkey thing. "Just the Lord of the Dead and a few of his blood-thirstiest minions." That got my attention.

"Grover!" Sally scolded as I shouted over a boom of thunder, "What?"

"Sorry, Ms. Jackson. Could you drive a bit faster please?" We were passing some PICK YOUR OWN STRAWBERRIES signs on white picket fences. Darkened farmhouses flew past us and then we approached another more familiar forested area.

I had tuned out the conversation, vaguely hearing them talk about how we were going to camp and the Fates. I had to focus and come up with a plan. I wouldn't be able to get any information out of Grover right now in a situation like this on his comment about my father. My mind was racing with all possible battle strategies, some of which I had learned at camp, some that I had come up with on my own. _None of these will work! We don't even have a proper weapon! I have three people to protect too!_

As far as I knew I had only one steel knife to work with. I might be able to distract the monster long enough for them to get over the hill and to safety. I would have to manage fighting him again without Nick's wind abilities this time though; last time even with them had been hard enough, we had almost lost. Grant it, we weren't as experienced but we at least had weapons then. I might be able to shadow travel us to safety, but that would be an incredible drain on me and just purely dangerous with so many people. The last time I had managed to shadow travel without drain.. the last battle. Chester, Nick, the war, the pain of that last fight, seeing everyone for the last time: it all hit me like a ton of bricks, the pressure of the situation making it ten times worse.

There was so much at stake again and I was the only one who would be able to even get close to being able to get everyone out okay. Grover was here but knowing him.. I pressed my forehead into my knees, hands on the back of my neck and shut my eyes. _This _cannot_ be happening, not now. Do not cave. Everyone needs you._ I exhaled a deep breath. The realness of fighting this monster again and the pressure of me being the only one to get everyone to safety, but this time without help, hit me hard. I had people to protect that I loved, I couldn't just go all out; I had to worry about what was happening with them too. No soloing it, not just myself to worry about, or Nick. He had almost always been able to handle himself though as I had. The weight of the situation was insurmountable. I took another deep breath. I felt the shadows pulling around me, then I felt a hand on my back and I jerked upright.

"Whoa there," Percy said as I came up.

"Grover! Do you have any weapons we can use?" I asked briskly, forcing aside my fears for the time being and just focusing on right then. I had to know what was in our arsenal, hopefully he had a hidden weapon. Grover looked at me in surprise, clearly not expecting that or for me to take charge.

"Um, I don't.. I didn't.." He fumbled for an answer.

"Crap," I cursed.

"Allison." Sally looked back at me sharply and I held up my hands in surrender.

"Yeah, okay I got you. No weapons. So all we have to work with is this then." I took out my knife, taking another look behind us through the rear window. I saw Grover jump back and shock, eyes bulging. Sally cast a glance to see what the sudden movement was about and she gasped.

"Allison Cooper! What do you think you are doing with that? How long have you had that?" She scolded.

"Um, that won't do us any good. Steel doesn't.." Grover started, gesturing at the metal.

"Yeah, I know. I found out with Mrs. Dodds." I lied.

"Allison, we are talking about this once we are safe." Sally gave me a stern look through the rear view mirror that promised I would get packed for this later. I gulped slightly.

Then, I was suddenly thrown against the door beside me with a resounding, jaw-rattling _BOOM!_ It felt like the car had exploded. It was almost like when Nick and I would battle with just our powers in the woods and he would shock me, only a lot worse. I was suddenly very glad that my knife didn't have a metal hilt, but I still got a jolt from it.

I pried my head off the window and looked to see that we had swerved into a ditch. The door on my side of the car was wedged into the mud and the roof had cracked open like an eggshell, rain pouring in. _So much for Gabe's car._ Zeus was the only explanation for the lightning that almost fried us. I felt a growing pit of anger toward him, he can't just interfere like that. He could have killed us, he wasn't allowed to do something like that. I saw Percy trying to pull Grover's motionless body off of me and out of the other door so I grabbed my backpack and threw it on. Sally was climbing out of the passenger side door in the front.

I helped Percy get Grover out the door and we managed to get out of the wreck with only some scratches and bumps to show for it. When I looked back down the road though my blood ran cold. I felt a lump rise in my throat. Just as I had feared, the Minotaur. I rushed to where Sally and Percy were dragging Grover up the hill and took an arm, clutching my knife. We had to get up that hill now or we would all be dead.

The Minotaur was sniffling at the car we had just been at; we had managed to get partly up the hill leading to camp but were nowhere close enough to get there before he found us.

"Percy! Allison! I'll take Grover, just get over that hill. Please! That's the property line, you will be safe there." She pointed to a tall pine tree that was atop the hill. _That wasn't there last time._ "Run and don't look back. Yell for help and don't stop until you reach the farmhouse door."

"Mom, you're coming too." Percy's face was one of resolve. Sally was pale and her eyes were sad, like she knew she wouldn't make it out of this. It reminded me of when I was faced with that same situation. _No, she will not end up like I had. I refuse to let it happen._

"Help us carry Grover. We are getting out of this." I said in a steely tone, leaving no room for argument in my voice.

"We don't have time, please. Go." We stubbornly kept lugging Grover up the hill, and just as more lighting lit up the world around us Percy looked back and froze.

"That's-"

" Pasiphaë's son," Sally interrupted. "I wish I'd known how badly they want to kill you two."

"But he's the Min-"

"Don't say his name," Sally warned. "Names have power." I saw Percy and Sally glance back one more time at the totaled car.

"Food?" Grover moaned. _Good, he's coming to. Now we can stop dragging him soon._

"Shhh," I hissed at Grover. He needed to be quiet.

"Mom, what's he doing? Doesn't he see us?"

"His sight and hearing are terrible, he goes by smell. But he'll figure out where we are soon enough."

I stole a look back at the Minotaur in time to see him pick up the car's remains and throw it down the road. When it landed there was a big fiery explosion as the gas tank blew up.

"When he sees us, he'll charge. Wait until the last second, then jump out of the way-directly sideways. He can't change directions very well once he's charging. Do you understand?" I nodded, the memory of Nick doing exactly that when we had battled it, but with the help of the winds flashing through my head. Hopefully I would be able to get everyone over the hill in time, if I was lucky. I was mentally trying to come up with any alternatives to pulling another "Last Battle" again, but the options weren't great.

"How do you know all this?" Percy asked.

"I've been worried about an attack for a long time now. I should have expected this. I was selfish, keeping you two near me."

"Keeping us near you? But-" He was cut off by a bellow of rage from the Minotaur. The pine tree was only just a few more yards, but the hill was getting steeper and slicker from the downfall as we approached the crest of the hill. Grover wasn't getting any lighter either. The Minotaur was closing in, just another few seconds and he would be on us. It was now or never.

"You two take Grover. I got this. Just trust me and get over the border." I slipped out from under Grover's arm, leaving the rest of the weight for Sally and Percy to carry. Sally caught my eye but I stared back at her, willing her to trust me and just get to the top of the hill. She nodded after a moment and I ran off to the side, knowing that I could trust her to get there.

I ran far enough away from the three of them so they wouldn't get hurt in the crossfire. I whirled around to see the Minotaur bearing down on me, his black eyes glowed with hatred, the smell of rotten meat hitting my nose. He lowered his head, aiming his razor-sharp horns at my chest and charged. My plan had worked so far, I had gotten his attention. Now to just stay alive.

I held my ground just long enough to jump out of the way at the last moment, the Minotaur storming past me like a runaway train. He bellowed in frustration and turned, but this time he was facing Percy, Sally, and Grover. _No!_ They slowly set down Grover in the grass; they had reached the top, almost to safety. They had a brief exchange, Percy gesturing like he was pumped full of sugar.

I started running toward them, but Percy had already separated himself from Sally. He was trying to get the Minotaur to follow, but it was already pawing the ground, ready to charge. Sally tried to stand her ground but as the Minotaur neared her he stretched his arms out to the sides, blocking any form of escape. Sally tried to sidestep, ducking under his arms but he grabbed her by the neck. She struggled as he lifted her, kicking and pummeling the air desperately. I got an unwanted image of Nick with Chester's sword at his throat in remembrance.

"Mom!" Percy yelled out as I kept on running, trying to save Sally in one last attempt but the ground was against me. I switched my grip on my knife and I hurled it at the Minotaur, trying to distract him long enough for me to get there. It just bounced away from his head, poking him in the eye. That only caused him to roar in my direction.

Sally looked away from the Minotaur long enough for her to choke out one last word: "GO!"

I made a desperate attempt to unseat some of the ground around the monster to knock him off his feat with my powers but only caused some rocks to fly and hit him and a painful tugging in my gut accompanied some of my energy draining away. With an angry roar the Minotaur closed his fists around Sally's neck and she dissolved into light, a shimmering golden form. Then with a blinding flash she was gone. I skidded in the grass to stop myself, slipping and crashing into the grass and mud. I felt something snap in my ankle as it hit against something hard and twisted. I couldn't help but let a small yelp escaped my lips before I could stop it. The Minotaur turned to face us, focusing in on where the noise had come from. _Damn you! You should have been able to stop him before he got Sally! She's gone now! _I berated myself, cursing myself for not being strong enough with my powers yet.

"Hey!" Percy screamed, rage filling his voice. He was waving around his red rain jacket, trying to catch the monster's attention. "Hey, stupid! Ground beef!" I struggled to get up while his back was turned.

"Raaaarrrrr!" The Minotaur was shaking his meaty fists as he charged Percy. Percy's back was to the pine. I grabbed Grover on my way and brought him over the property line, rolling him unceremoniously down the hill. _Sorry buddy, but you're safest down there._ I turned back to the action in time to see Percy jump up and onto the Minotaur's head, latching onto his horns. The Minotaur crashed into the tree and I saw Percy's grip falter, but he quickly recovered. This was not going as I had hoped. _Of course it isn't going well, it's you for the gods' sake! _

Thunder and lightning rolled through the landscape, the storm intensifying. I pushed past the pain in my ankle and tried to run toward Percy and the Minotaur as best I could. The Minotaur was staggering around and bucked, trying to get him off. Then Percy's face suddenly filled with more anger and he grabbed one horn with both hands and pulled. The monster froze, grunted, and then went and flung Percy through the air. He landed with his back in the grass, head smacking into something. He sat up but still looked dazed. He was still holding the Minotaur's severed horn in his hands. I made one last push as the Minotaur went to charge Percy again only to lose my footing and start sliding down the wrong side of the hill.

"NO!" I screamed. Just as he was about to trample him, Percy rolled to one side and came up kneeling, driving the horn into the monster's belly and up toward his heart. The Minotaur roared in agony and he flailed around, disintegrating. I made a snap decision and shadow traveled the rest of the distance, appearing in the shadow the moon cast on the tree. In one last attempts he swung at Percy's head with his giant hairy hand but I dove in the way, latching onto Percy. I felt as the Minotaur struck me but I had already pooled all of the rest of my energy into shadow traveling Percy and I away.

The familiar tug and rush of darkness that came with shadow traveling encased us and we landed with a the porch of the Big House, inside the borders. _Safe._ I groaned and rolled over, off my backpack and away from Percy, heart pounding. I called out to Chiron with the last of my energy and heard hooves approaching, holding my side before I blacked out entirely.

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**Thanks for reading, leave a comment or something, those always help a ton! Enjoy your week!**


	11. Chapter 11: I'm Back

**AN 5/29/15:** Hey there, so thanks for all the feedback. I was curious about that for some time now. I assume that once I am eventually done with this story you guys will either find it by way of seeing the a future story of mine or a search. Anyway, a little Allison backstory glimpse in here and some fighting. I hope you all enjoyed your week! I look forward to any comments or things of that nature you post for this update. Best of luck until I post again next week or until you see this again, or not. Either way, I wish you a merry pre-summer day.

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My dreams were filled with images of Sally being suffocated in the Minotaur's grasp and Percy being trampled or struck with lightning. I even saw images of Nick - of him being killed the same way I had seen in my first dream years ago and the time I had almost lost him before that in forty-three. The images of him being overwhelmed and captured by one of the enemy as I was knocked unconscious by an unseen foe. The ground of the mountain cracking and rumbling as the energy drained from my body all haunted my dreams.

It had happened so many years ago, on a mission into Europe, but I had been stupid and we ended up being captured. We had barely managed to get out of there and into one of the safe houses for demigods on our side, only after weeks had passed though. The demigods we had been on the mission with thought we had been killed. We only got out from using my concealed weapons once we were put back together so I knew he wouldn't be harmed if I tried. They blocked me from using my powers to shadow travel away with celestial bronze. I had killed some of the mortal soldiers guarding us for one of my siblings to get us out and it was not something I ever wanted to have to resort to doing again.

The first time that I woke up there was a girl with curly blonde hair feeding me ambrosia. I moaned as some of my senses started to come into focus and turned my head over to look for Percy. I saw him safely laying a few cots down from where I was and sighed in relief now that I knew for sure he was in safe hands. I hadn't felt this drained ever since that escape.

"What do you know about him? You came here together, right?" The girl asked. I turned to look back at her, this time really taking in her features. She had a Californian tan and stormy grey eyes. _A daughter of Athena, _I thought offhandedly. She kept looking back and forth between Percy and I. She had this look on her face that said she wouldn't stop until she had answers.

"What's going on, what was stolen? We've only got a few weeks left until the solstice!" She insisted. I had no clue what she was talking about, but it did somewhat ring a bell. Alecto had basically said something was stolen, then Percy overheard Chiron and Grover talking about the summer solstice. They were connected, then with the fight between Zeus and Poseidon, it must be something that included Percy for Poseidon, or one of his other kids. Probably Percy though if Alecto had come for him. For Zeus, well he was a big drama queen, it could really be anything.

"I don't know." I said with little energy, pushing aside the ambrosia she was trying to feed me. I was already feeling a bit too warm from it. I tried to sit up but the pain in my side made me fall back down onto the cot. My head swam briefly, the lack of energy getting to me.

"Ughh.." I moaned stupidly.

"You need sleep. Go back to bed." The girl insisted after observing my attempt.

I was already almost asleep. Shadow traveling like that after so many years of not doing it really drains a person, especially with a passenger. Then the attempt at the ground stuff tacked onto that.

The second time I woke up and finally stayed up wasn't because I was being fed ambrosia. I woke to the same girl who had been healing me asking a drowsy Percy questions. They sounded like they were almost the exact same questions she had asked me earlier. I saw as Percy muttered something, then there was a knock at the door and the girl shoved ambrosia into his mouth. The door opened and Chiron walked in.

"Annabeth, thank you for helping take care of these two. You may go back to your activities now though. You have done plenty." Chiron said to the girl who I assumed to be Annabeth.

Annabeth nodded and walked out, ambrosia in hand. Once the door was shut Chiron sighed and walked over to my cot. I was still pretending to be asleep as I had been since waking up to be able to listen but I slowed my breathing even more as he approached. Internally I was debating whether or not to tell Chiron everything right now. I relaxed my muscles as he came up to the side of my bed.

"I know you are not asleep, Allison." The jig was up, Chiron had too much experience to be so easily fooled. I opened my eyes and met his. After so long, finally seeing Chiron again as himself and being in the place to actually tell him that I knew who I was, it felt like such a relief. I stretched my arm out to him. He paused for a moment and then leaned down and returned the hug.

"I-I'm so sorry, Chiron. I don't know what happened. I've been so lost." I said softly as tears started to form. He just comforted me until I quieted down.

"Well, it looks as if we have a lot to discuss, wouldn't you say?" He said, trying to brighten the mood. I smiled a bit as he helped me out of the cot. I put weight down slowly on my ankle. The pain was still there but it was considerably less. My side still hurt from the Minotaur but it was manageable.

"Yeah, I'm still not one-hundred-percent."

"Let us go to the Big House to talk." He smiled down at me, but I could see the glint of worry on his features. I had died after all, I shouldn't be here, especially being a daughter of Hades.

We walked over to the Big House, Chiron going slower for me to be able to keep pace. We walked inside and he gestured for me to sit in a comfy looking couch. I sat while he lowered himself into the wheelchair he had used as Mr. Brunner.

"So, I know a lot has happened. I do not blame you for not telling me sooner, but why not start at the beginning." I nodded and took a moment to collect my thoughts, then started to tell him my story. I started with when he had seen Nick and our team off on the mission to protect camp. He would raise an eyebrow here and there but he never interrupted. When I got to Chester and my death, I had to stop a few times. It was hard to actually retell it aloud for the first time, even after all this time. It made it seem so much more real, but Chiron was patient.

I eventually got up to Yancy Academy, then to seeing him and knowing about Grover being a satyr. Then the trip to the museum. I made sure to thank him for saving Percy and I as I told him what happened from my perspective. Chiron grew a deeper frown on his face when he heard what Alecto had said, but covered it quickly. I decided to ask about that after I was done with my story.

I was hesitant to bring up the encounter with the Fates, but I needed his take on it. He knew a lot more about that type of thing than I did. When I went into telling him about the vision Atropos had shown me his eyebrows had raised in surprise but he quickly scrunched back down in thought as he leaned back into his seat. Eventually I got up to the fight with the Minotaur and Sally disappearing. I knew she hadn't died, I would be able to tell if she had. Especially her being a person so close to me.

"What do you think happened to her, Chiron? I know she isn't dead."

After a moment he replied. "Well, from what you described to me, I would say she was taken. I do not know by whom, but my guess would be for something to hold against Percy and yourself."

I understood the concept of having something or someone to control others all too well, but who would want to control Percy or me now? Then I remembered the dream I was having when Percy woke me up at Montauk, and the one on our first day of school.

"Chiron, what's going on? What was stolen and what's up with the summer solstice?" Chiron looked as if he was debating telling me whatever the answer was, then he made his choice. He told me about Zeus's master bolt and how it was missing. He briefly filled me in on the different things I had missed in the years I was gone. I sighed in relief when I heard that my siblings were defeated with minimal casualties from camp. Then I asked the question that had been bugging me for years now.

"Chiron, I need to know... what happened to Nick?"

"Well, Allison. He made it back to camp safely after that mission." He skirted around that mission, the one that had taken my life and the world I knew. "But after that is a discussion for another time."

"But, Chi-" He cut me off with a look, telling me no to continue. I found myself tapping my fingers with nervous energy and a bit of frustration, but I relented, for now. "Fine."

"Where will I be sleeping? The Hermes cabin again? Oh, do I have any siblings at camp right now?" Chiron got an interesting type of look on his face, like he was about to tell me something that would shatter my world, but was holding back.

"You do not have any siblings at camp right now, Allison. Yes, you will be residing in the Hermes cabin again, but it would be for the best for you not to reveal your parentage right now. Things have happened since the war, my dear. I will tell you more of it later when you are ready. For now though you should rest. You drained yourself dangerously when you got Percy to the porch. You could use some nectar for that ankle and your side as well. Relax while I bring you some." He said carefully, then he wheeled off over to the kitchen. My spirits fell from the slight jump they had taken at the idea that I might have good siblings at camp and I had the slight hope that Hades would have a cabin of his own by now. But I wasn't allowed to tell who I was again? I thought this time would be different.

I heard Chiron take out a glass and fill it. I leaned back into the couch; it was really comfortable and I was already getting tired again. I put my feet on the cushions and put a pillow behind me, against the armrest. Chiron came back a minute later holding a glass of nectar. He brought it over to me and set it on the coffee table.

"I have some activities to attend to. Rest for the time being. If you need me you need just ask. Also, I believe this is yours." He said with a slightly mischievous look on his face, placing my steel hunting knife on the table before me. I smiled sheepishly a bit and took it. "You did well for what resources you had. " He said as he wheeled out after giving my head a pat.

"Oh, and Allison. I assume you already know, but I must say it anyway. It would be for the best if you pretend you are just a new camper here. Questions with difficult answers would arise if you show otherwise."

I nodded and picked up the glass, taking a long drink. Warmth spread through my body, the taste of my mother's homemade caramel filling my mouth. I slowly finished the glass and set it down to take a nap.

When I woke I found it was very early the next morning. Somebody had put a blanket over me while I was asleep along with leaving a change of clothes on the table. The nectar from the day before had really helped: my side didn't hurt anymore and my ankle was just a bit sore. I got up, quickly changed in the nearest bathroom, and went outside to find Chiron. I heard the sounds of many people chatting and eating up by the dining pavilion so I made my way over.

The pavilion was filled with kids ranging from about ten all the way up to their late teens. I looked around and saw the Zeus and Poseidon tables to be empty. _That's weird, usually those tables have at least some kids there._ I skirted around the pavilion and came up to the head table where Chiron was. He was talking with a porky man who had a red nose, watery eyes, and curly hair so black it was almost purple. He wore a tiger-pattern Hawaiian shirt. I realized this was Dionysus; God of Wine, Madness, Theater, and Vegetation. _What is he doing at camp?_

I approached the table, nodded my head at Dionysus respectfully and addressed Chiron.

"Hey, Chiron. Thank you for letting me sleep in." He offered me a smile.

"Not a problem. Well, let's introduce you to camp then why don't we?"

He rose to his full height and banged his hoof against the marble ground, effectively gathering everyone's attention. I awkwardly stood there next to him, just standing in front of the mass of unknown campers, eyes all on me.

"Good morning, Campers!" As you might already know, we have some new arrivals amongst us." Some of the shorter kids were moving around to get a better look. Chiron put his hand on my back and gently pushed me forward.

"This is Miss. Cooper, undetermined. Luke, would you please show Allison to her table?" There was a slight grumbling at the undetermined. Then a tall blonde boy with a large scar running down his face and blue eyes stood and made his way over. "Now, everyone, please show her your kindness. You were all new here at some point. Welcome to Camp Half-Blood Miss. Cooper." Chiron concluded and everyone went back to eating their breakfast. _More like welcome back._

"Allison, this is Luke Castellan; head counselor of the Hermes Cabin. Luke, after breakfast would you give Miss. Cooper a tour of camp?"

"Sure thing, Chiron." Luke said, holding his hand out to shake and I took it. Luke looked to be in his late teens, his camp necklace held three beads for three years at camp. Absently I wondered where my old camp necklace would be. _Probably with mom._

"Nice to meet you, Allison. Come on, let's get you some breakfast." He led me over to the Hermes table and made a spot for me amongst the crowd. I sat down and a nymph brought me out some food and a goblet. I thanked her and filled my glass with plain old water. It felt like I hadn't had something to drink in ages. I was about to take a bite of my food when Luke stopped me.

"Hold up, you have to sacrifice some food to the gods. Wouldn't want them to get grumpy." _Oh yeah. Duh, I'm stupid. How could I have forgotten that?_ I followed him up to the brazier in the center of the pavilion. He explained to me about sacrificing and all, but I already knew about that stuff so I just picked out some of the better looking strawberries and bacon and dumped them into the fire. _Hades and Hermes._

After breakfast Luke showed me around camp and put some of his other siblings in charge for the time being. I took note of the things that had changed since my last visit as I played the "newbie", asking all the usual questions and acting all amazed. Luke then took me to assess my skill level with a sword and to get me one to use in the arena. Kids were scattered around the arena having sword fighting practice when we arrived. _Perfect. _I hid a smile.

Luke started me out with the basics, choosing a sword that fit me best and he went into teaching. At first it was just basic moves, counters, blocks, etcetera. I was happy to find I hadn't lost my touch much when it came to fighting. I was itching to get my hand on my knife and fight with that too, but I didn't want to seem too advanced. Dual-wielding a sword and dagger at the on my first day would be a major tipoff. It was supposed to be my first time here and that was a more advanced skill that only certain demigods had a natural affinity for. Once Luke saw that I was doing well with what he was teaching me he suggested we try out some sparring. I agreed and we squared off.

I stood with my knees slightly bent, toes light and ready to dance myself out of the way of any attacks. I leveled my sword and Luke and I started circling each other.

"I'm not going to give you and instructions, you just do what comes naturally and what you believe is best. Then we will work from there to-" I grinned and came in for the attack mid-sentence. He raised an eyebrow at my move but blocked my strike easily. I ducked out of the way and raised my sword to block his counter. Soon the fighting became more intense. I was a bit out of practice but was holding my own, albeit it was a bit tiring. I rolled out of the way of an incoming attack and came up with my blade raised to block his swing that was trying to catch me off-guard.

"Nope!" I laughed happily as I blocked, it was exhilarating to fight again. Luke then seemed to get a more intense look in his eyes. He started really beating down on me. My smile disappeared after a number of his new styled attacks. Luke was starting to pull more elaborate moves, lining up a few strikes in advance as if he was playing a game of chess. He also put more power behind his hits. By now I was panting and sweating a bit. He took a wild swing at my head and I quickly ducked. I was then swept off my feet by a well placed kick at my legs and they fell out from under me. I landed with a grunt and rolled to get out of the way. Too late did I realize that he was expecting that and his blade was leveled at my throat, making me freeze.

"Yield?"

"Fine." I dropped my sword and held up my hands. I looked around to realize that our little matched had not gone unnoticed. Onlookers had stopped their matches to watch our fight and kids were whispering to each other. I gathered that a partner of Luke's, especially a supposed newbie like myself, never lasted as long as I had. Luke looked down at me, pulled away his sword, and offered me a hand up. It still looked like other things were on his mind though, like he was observing me.

"Well, you did great for your first time. That was your first, right? You almost look like you've done this before."

"Yeah, my first. I guess it just comes naturally." I lied as I picked up my sword, wiping some sweat from my brow.

"If you and that other kid came here together, then I would love to see _his_ skill with a sword too." I simply nodded, knowing that Percy already had some natural talent with a sword. That coupled with my little games I staged with sticks and "playing pirates", he would have some affinity to it for real. I knew all too well though that he had not seen actual combat before with actual weapons, battling for his life, minus his brief work taking care of Alecto.

"Come on, I think that's enough for today." We went and grabbed a drink, then headed off to meet up with the rest of the cabin for the day's events. An hour or so had passed since the arena when I got the news that Percy had woken up. I ditched Luke and the Hermes cabin and ran over to the Big House. There I saw Percy standing with Grover near Chiron, Dionysus, and that girl Annabeth. Chiron and Dionysus were playing pinochle, Annabeth was leaning against the porch railing, and Percy was holding the Minotaur horn, which I figured Grover had gone and collected.

I saw Percy take a seat and then Chiron noticed me run up the porch stairs.

"Ah, Miss. Cooper. How are you getting along at camp so far? All is well I hope?" He greeted.

"Yeah, Chiron. It's great." Then I went over to Percy and gave him a big hug. He still looked a little shaky but he was a lot better than he was a few days ago. "Percy, I'm so glad to see you awake. How are you feeling?"

"Allison! I was asking for you, they said you were out around the camp somewhere. Yeah, I feel okay. Thanks."

"Annabeth?" Chiron called. She came forward and he introduced us formally.

"This young lady nursed you two back to health. Annabeth, my dear, why don't you go check on Percy's bunk? We will be putting him in cabin eleven for now, and I believe Miss. Cooper has yet to be assigned a bunk as well."

"Sure, Chiron." Annabeth turned toward Percy, looking between him and the Minotaur horn. Just by her eyes I could tell her mind was running a million miles-per-hour. Then I saw her get a slightly mischievous look.

"You drool when you sleep." Then she sprinted off down the lawn. I couldn't help myself and I burst out laughing until I couldn't breathe. I had managed to yell out a "Thanks!" to her but I just couldn't stop. Percy's expression was priceless. He then turned and hit my shoulder.

"Don't laugh." He pouted.

"Sorry, sorry. That was just hilarious, Percy. She's right, you know. You do kind of drool in your sleep." I grinned.

"So," He said, looking back to Chiron, eager to change the subject. "You, uh, work here, Mr. Brunner?"

"No, not Mr. Brunner, child. I am afraid that was a pseudonym. You may call me Chiron."

"Okay," Percy looked totally confused. "And Mr. D.. does that stand for something?"

Dionysus stopped shuffling his cards and looked at Percy as if he had just squirted vinegar in his face.

"Young man, names are powerful things. You don't just go around using them for no reason all willy-nilly."

"Oh. Right, sorry." But I could tell he still didn't entirely get the concept. After a few years in the Greek world though, that concept kind of was a side thing. You didn't really pay attention to it much unless it was a god or something really major, even then it wasn't as "fiery scary death ahh-BOOM" to say aloud.

"I must say, Percy." Chiron broke in. "I'm glad to see you alive. It has been a long time since I've made a house call to a potential camper. I'd hate to think I've wasted my time." I let out a short laugh. That was such a Chiron thing to say when he wasn't thinking fully. They all looked at me but I just motioned for them to continue.

"House call?"

"My year at Yancy Academy, to instruct you, and then Miss. Cooper. We have satyrs in most schools, of course, keeping a lookout. But Grover alerted me as soon as he met you. He sensed you were something special, so I decided to come upstate. I convinced your previous Latin teacher to.. ah, take a leave of absence."

"You came to Yancy just to teach me?"

Chiron nodded. "Honestly, I wasn't sure about you at first. We contacted your mother to let her know we were keeping an eye on you in case you were ready for Camp Half-Blood. But you still had so much to learn. Then I discovered Miss. Cooper with you, so going to Yancy Academy turned out to be a very wise idea indeed. Nevertheless, you two made it here alive, and that is always the first test."

I let them chat for a while as they played pinochle and I sat on the porch railing. I tried not to interrupt as this conversation was really important for Percy to understand. After a bit I think they forgot I was there. Dionysus soon took Grover into the farmhouse. I already knew what Chiron was explaining to Percy so I just tuned it out after a while and took in the warmth of the sun shining down into camp. Finally Chiron got up out of his wheelchair, showing his whole self to Percy, whose eyes almost bugged out of his head.

"What a relief," Chiron sighed. "I'd been cooped up in there so long, my fetlocks had fallen asleep. Now, come Percy. Let's meet the other campers."

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Leave a comment to tell me what you think! I'm always curious and hope that you enjoy what I've written. Even if its negative I will accept it, I see it as a way to improve.


	12. Chapter 12: Clarisse

**AN 6/7/15:** Hey, so sorry this is a day late, but this has been honestly a crazy week. Thursday alone was a handful: waking up to hear one of my parents was in the hospital and Prom the same day. It proved to be interesting indeed. I haven't gotten much sleep, so I slept most of yesterday (Saturday). (On the note of my parent, he is home now if any of you were wondering and fine). I am glad to see replies to the most recent chapter. Also to the Guest who commented about the di Angelo's, don't you worry, friend, I have something special planned indeed. Work on the second book is going slowly so I started on the third for a change. I have many plans going in my devious mind in store for Allison meeting them and future events. I so badly want for you guys to be able to read it, but the things I have planned happen throughout the next books, and onward in the plot. Titan's Curse has some big plot developments in that aspect, but I shall say no more.

Hmm, **Question of this week**: _**What is your favorite book series?**_ If it is PJATO/HOO, tell me that and your second. I am looking for new series to read :)

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I walked with Chiron and Percy over to the Hermes cabin where Annabeth was waiting for us on the steps after the tour around the camp. She looked to be reading a book on Greek architecture. _Typical child of Athena._

"Annabeth, I have Master's Archery class at noon, would you take them from here?"

"Yes, sir."

"Cabin Eleven, make yourselves at home." Chiron said as he gestured to the cabin. Now that I was closer I realized that the cabin was different from the last time I had seen it. I guess at some point they decided to rebuild, then I took a glance around and realized that some of the other cabins were similar. _Huh._ I looked to Chiron but he wasn't looking in my direction. He was guiding Percy into the cabin. As Chiron came into view of the residents they all bowed. _Well that's formal. Probably just want to stay on his good side for when they pull pranks._

"Well, I must be going. Good luck to you, Percy." Chiron gave me a slight nod and cantered off.

Once he left the kids noticeable were eyeing Percy.

"Well, go on." Annabeth said, gesturing to the doorway. Percy squared his shoulders and stepped through the threshold, only to stumble. I sighed, a great first impression. I at least had my sword fight with Luke under my belt impression wise. Knowing camp, the news had spread already. There were a few snickers but aside from that everyone stayed quiet.

Looking into the cabin for the first time I noticed that it was even more packed than when I had stayed here. That was a bit concerning. There were sleeping bags strewn all over the floor, leaving very minimal floor space. The cabin really needed to be expanded or something, maybe a Hecate kid could do something magically to expand it? I peeked my head in further and noticed that somebody had put my bag at a spot on the floor next to a pillow and rolled up sleeping bag.

"Percy Jackson, meet cabin eleven."

"Regular or undetermined?" Somebody in the back asked.

"Undetermined." Annabeth replied, causing everyone to groan a bit. Then Luke stepped in and chided the campers, introducing himself to Percy. I noticed Annabeth's slight blush and sighed a bit. Hopefully it was just a hero type admiration thing, he was too old for her. Annabeth then pulled Percy away from the cabin to stop him from making a bigger fool of himself. I followed and listened as she told him about how he had to make a better first impression. The conversation passed from one about Mrs. Dodds to Annabeth trying to convince Percy about the gods.

"Allison, do you believe any of this stuff?" He finally asked. I thought about what I should reply for a moment.

"It was a bit hard to believe at first, but yeah. Just think about all the incidents we had at school, then Mrs. Dodds and the battle on the hill. What else could explain it? For a while now I've had a feeling that stuff wasn't as it seemed. Sally protected us from a majority of stuff, but it was still out there."

Percy frowned a bit, still not wanting to accept this new, dangerous world. I honestly couldn't blame him. It was scary, and there was no going back.

Then a husky voice yelled, "Well, newbies!" I looked over to see a group of girls coming over from the Ares cabin. _Oh great. Just what I need._ I turned a bit and slid my knife slightly out of its sheath, ready for action if it came to it.

"Clarisse, why don't you go and polish you spear or something?" Annabeth was equally not as happy to see the group as I was. I knew these types of kids, the Ares cabin was always filled with them.

"Sure, Miss. Princess. Right after I run you through with it Friday night."

"_Erre es korakas!" Go to the crows, dang._ "You don't stand a chance."

"We'll pulverize you and your whole team." Clarisse jeered, but I caught her eye twitch. She wasn't entirely as confident as she projected about that threat. I smiled a bit, typical Ares kids and their attempts to be tough and macho. Never changes.

"Who's the runt?" She asked, nodding her head at Percy. I guess she already knew about me from breakfast.

"Percy Jackson, meet Clarisse, daughter of Ares."

"Like the war god?" He asked.

"Got a problem?" Clarisse sneered. My hand lingered closer to my knife, I noticed that two of the girls had swords strapped to their belts.

"No, it just explains the smell." Leave it to Percy to tick off a bunch of Ares kids on his first day.

"We've got an initiation ceremony for newbies, Prissy." She grinned, so sure of herself in the ability to take down two untrained kids. People like her made me pretty ticked off. It was hard enough for a new demigod to wrap their minds around this place without having a bunch of bullies pestering you. They needed to be taken down a notch or two. She had to get better at her insults too, they were like kindergarten level.

"Percy."

"Whatever, come on, I'll show you."

"Clarisse," Annabeth tried to intervene but there wasn't much she could do.

"Stay out of it wise girl." _Wow, a compliment as an insult. Bravo._

She looked pained, but stepped back. Clarisse and her buddies spread out in front of us and I slid into a slightly better stance. Percy handed Annabeth the Minotaur horn and got ready. They moved in like a pack of water buffalos: loud, smelly, big, and cumbersome. Clarisse and one of her sisters went for Percy as the two others went for me. I dodged around their grasps until they grew frustrated. They started throwing punches but I managed to dodge or deflect a majority of them. I glanced over to see Percy in a headlock.

"Take care of her, we'll take him." Clarisse said as she started towing a struggling Percy toward the bathrooms. _They are in so much trouble if they try to take him in there._ Annabeth looked torn between following Percy and staying here with me. She decided to linger at the bathroom door, still able to watch me.

"You guys think you are so tough? Picking on all the new kids? Don't you think they have a tough enough time trying to understand this all without your attempts? Pathetic, and you call yourselves children of war. Just a bunch of little bullies who think themselves strong is all I see." I taunted. They growled at me and as I dodged a punch from one the other took advantage of that and grabbed my shoulders. I quickly dropped all my weight, going limp and she stumbled. I took use of her off center of balance and twisted her around so she tumbled into the grass. I dodged a swing and struck out with my own, hitting the girl's elbow to knock her blow aside. The one on the ground got up and let out an frustrated sound and drew her sword.

"So now you are sinking so low as to raise your sword against an unarmed demigod? Good luck with that." I whipped out my knife and I saw a slight bit of shock on her face, clearly not expecting me to have a weapon as a new kid. I was fed up with these girls, I was done. Screw me supposed to be acting like a newbie, they were going down. I deflected a hit and ducked a kick at my chest, sweeping low and knocking the kicker off balance. Soon I was dealing with two sword wielding daughters of Ares.

Annabeth came running up the hill once she saw the fight take it's harsh turn, wielding a celestial bronze knife and yelling at the girls to stop. Just as I slammed the hilt of my knife into one of the girl's back, there was a loud crashing accompanied with screams and water blasted out of the bathrooms. Clarisse and her sister were swept out of the bathroom. My fight had stopped once the water came, all of us freezing, Annabth turning around and watching in wonder. The two girls sheathed their swords and ran down the hill as Annabeth and I ran down also.

Percy walked out, a bit stunned, but unscathed and completely dry. I smiled at his handiwork.

"How did you.." Annabeth was at a loss for words.

"I don't know." A bunch of campers had gathered around to gawk at the events. Clarisse and her sister were sprawled out in the mud and toilet water, completely soaked.

"You're dead, you hear me? Dead!" Clarisse yelled in rage.

"You want a gargle with toilet water again Clarisse? Close your mouth." Her sisters held her back from getting to Percy and led her away, the two I had fought shooting me nasty, furious glares. I just gave them a little wave, sticking my tongue out at them a bit for the heck of it. I then turned to Percy, giving him a high-five. Annabeth came up to us, looking like she wanted to say something.

"What?"

"I'm thinking that I want you two on my team for Friday night."

As we finished Percy's tour, campers whispered about us as we passed, stuff about toilet water and knives. Finally we came back to the trail by the lake that lead back to the cabins.

"I've got training to do, I'll see you two at dinner, just follow you cabin to the mess hall."

"Annabeth, sorry about the bathrooms, that you were put in that situation."

"Whatever."

"It wasn't my fault." She looked at him skeptically. I could already see it now, Percy in the near future using his watery powers to defeat monsters, like how the other Poseidon kids used to do.

"You need to talk with the Oracle." She finally said.

"Who?"

"Not who, what. The Oracle. I'll ask Chiron." _Not who, what?_

"Wait, Annabeth. Isn't the Oracle a person?" Memories of the old Oracle coming to the forefront of my mind. Had something happened to Ruthie? She was the Oracle when I was first at camp. But the Oracle moved from person to Percy through the ages, it might not have been her.

"How did you-yeah, in the old days. Not anymore, she's a mummy now." My eyes widened, Chiron had really missed some things when he caught me up. What happened to Ruthie, if it was her? I needed to have a little chat with him later.

"I, uh, remembered from school, the old Oracle at Delphi." I lied, covering up my blunder. It was a logical reason, it could pass.

"True- Percy! Don't encourage them, Naiads are terrible flirts." Annabeth caught Percy cautiously waving back to some of the Naiads in the lake. I took a step closer to Percy. I didn't want my presence here to start something, it was better if I stuck closer to Percy.

"Naiads. That's it, I want to go home."

"Don't you get it, Percy? You _are_ home now. Camp is the only safe place in the world for kids like us. You can't just go home without having to face monsters constantly." Annabeth explained.

"Kids like us, so mentally disturbed kids?"

"No," she sighed. "I mean not human, well not completely human. Half-human."

"Half-human and half-what?" Percy asked cautiously.

"I think you know."

After a moment Percy replied. "God. Half-god." He had an interesting look on his face, like a mix between fear and awe.

"That's right, you dad isn't dead. He is one of the Olympians." _Technically, minor gods and goddesses who are not Olympians can have kids too._

"That's.. crazy."

"Is it? Think about it, all the gods did in the old stories was run around falling in love with mortals and having kids. Do you think they've changed at all if there wasn't need to?" She had a point there, I wasn't even sure what would be big enough to make the gods change even that.

"So then, if all of the kids here are half-gods-"

"Demigods, that's the official term." She corrected, her Athenian side showing.

"Okay, demigods, then who's you dad?" Annabeth's face reddened and she looked like she had this conversation too often with new kids.

"Not all the parents of demigods have to be gods. Goddesses have children too."

"Then who's your mom?" Percy looked a little embarrassed.

"Athena, goddess of wisdom and battle, right?" I asked. She looked at me curiously.

"Yeah, you really read up on the old stories, huh? How did you know?"

"Well, you were reading a book about architecture earlier, Clarisse called you wise girl, you seem pretty bright, and you have grey eyes, just like Athena in the stories."

"That's pretty good for you to pick up on all that." She complimented. Percy looked like he couldn't believe that I had gotten that all on my own.

"You sure you aren't my sister?" She joked, a small smile on her face.

"I don't.. um," I paused awkwardly, thinking of how to explain it to her. It seemed like I could never be who I was, always hiding. A picture of my mother in her favorite house dress came to mind at the mention of her.

"Ally started living with my mom and I when we were both toddlers." Percy filled in for me.

"Yeah, that." I confirmed, thankful he explained it for me.

"Oh, sorry. So you don't know who your godly parent would be then?" She looked a little embarrassed.

"Yeah.. no." I technically did know, but I just couldn't say I did. Again with the having to hide everything, living life in the shadows. _How ironic._

"Well maybe our parents will send a sign or something? I bet my mom knew who my father was."

"Maybe not, Percy. Gods don't always reveal who they are. He might not have." Annabeth said carefully. It was sad but true, not all gods did. They were mainly in it just for the short term relationship.

"My dad would have, he loved her." Annabeth looked like she wasn't happy to go down this road again with another camper. Having to break the news to new kids was never easy.

"Maybe you're right. He might send a sign. That's the only way to know for sure: your father has to claim you as his son by sending a sign. Sometimes it happens."

"You mean sometimes it doesn't."

Annabeth busied herself with running her hand across the railing. "Well, the gods are busy. They don't always have time for us, they tend to have a lot of kids.. and they don't always-well sometimes they don't care about us. They ignore us." The image of all of the unclaimed kids I had seen came to mind from the Hermes cabin. Even if they were claimed by a god who wasn't an Olympian, they still had to stay in the Hermes cabin.

"So we're stuck here. Is that is? For the rest of our lives?"

"It depends. Some campers can manage with only staying during the summer. If you're a child of say, Aphrodite or Demeter, maybe Mr. D, you can skirt by. You aren't too powerful a force, monsters might ignore you, so you can get by with just a few months of summer training. Then you can live the rest of the year in the mortal world. Out there, we attract monsters. They sense us and come to challenge us. Most of the time, they'll ignore us until we're old enough to cause trouble, about ten or eleven years old. After that, most demigods make their way here, or get killed off. A few manage to survive out there and become famous. If I were to tell you some of the names you'd know them. Some don't even realize they're demigods. But those are few and far between."

"So this camp is protected from monsters?"

Annabeth nodded. "Yes, unless they are stocked in the woods or specifically summoned by someone on the inside, for practice fights, practical jokes.

"Practical jokes?"

"Look, the point is that the borders are sealed to keep mortals and monsters out. From the outside we look like a valley, or a strawberry farm."

"So.. you're a year-rounder?"

She nodded again and took out her camp necklace from under the collar of her shirt. It held the same beads as Luke's, but with the addition of a college ring.

"I've been here since I was seven. Every August, on the last day of summer session, you get a bead for surviving another year. I've been here longer than most of the counselors, and they're all in college.

"Why so young?"

She fingered her necklace. That could be a sensitive question for some campers. "None of your business."

"Oh." We stood there for a minute in uncomfortable silence. "So.. I could just walk out of here right now if I wanted to?"

"Percy.." I warned. I had just gotten him safe and now he wanted to endanger himself again.

"It would be suicide, but you could with permission. But they wouldn't give permission until the end of summer session unless.."

"Unless?" _A quest._

"You were granted a quest. But that hardly ever happens. The last time.." By the tone of her voice I could tell the last quest had not gone well. But no more quests? That was just weird. Yeah, there weren't a ton of quests when I was at camp, but we would go out on missions. I had been on my fair share of them myself. Not quite quests but we still got out.

I realized that I had missed a bit of the conversation, they were talking about the summer solstice now. Annabeth seemed frustrated about it too, like she wanted to do more.

"I wish I knew. Chiron said the satyrs know, but they won't tell me. Something is wrong on Olympus, something major." I knew I had to hold back, if the campers knew about the master bolt, things would get bad. The last thing we needed right now was for campers to get into an uproar.

"The best I can figure is that something important was stolen, and if it isn't returned by the summer solstice, there will be trouble. When you came, I was hoping.. I mean Athena can get along with just about anybody, except Ares. And of course she's got the rivalry with Poseidon. But, I mean, aside from that, I thought we could work together." _That might be a problem for you there Annabeth. I still don't see why the gods' kids have to be in line with their parents rivalries and spats. Nick and I were never like that.. _

"I thought you two might know something." _Yeah, but it isn't for your ears._

"I've got to get a quest," Annabeth muttered to herself. "I'm not too young. If they would just tell me what the problem was-" Percy's stomach let out a howl and she stopped. _You are too young for something this big, Annabeth. You don't want to get wrapped up into something that much bigger than yourself too soon, _I thought sadly. The aroma of barbecue was drifting down from the pavilion. Annabeth told us to go on and get ready to eat. She lingered back though, drawing what looked to be invisible battle plans with her finger. _Probably for Capture the Flag._

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**_Note: If you find any spelling or typing errors, I only did a once over, and one where I am very tired. Things have been busy so if you find a typo or mistype, just tell me. Thanks :) _**

**_Hope you have an awesome week, and hopefully end of the school year!_**


	13. Chapter 13: Swords and the Oath

**AN 6/12/15: **Hey there, thanks for the reply! I will have to check out that series, it sounds good: the Skullduggery one. Anyway, enjoy your week and since this is a shorter chapter I will post again tomorrow or Sunday.

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Back at the cabin everyone was talking and horsing around while we waited for dinner. Nobody paid much attention to us as we found our spots. Percy was a few sleeping spots down from me so I sat and checked my bag to make sure nothing of value was taken. It all looked surprisingly good. I then caught a bit of Percy's conversation with Luke.

"I don't belong here, I don't even believe in gods." Percy was saying.

"Yeah, that's how we all started. Once you start believing in them? It doesn't get any easier." Luke said in an uncharacteristically bitter voice. Percy said something I didn't catch over the chatter of the cabin, then Luke pulled out a switchblade. I tensed but then relaxed when he just scraped the mud off the sole of his sandal.

"Yeah. Hermes."

"The wing-footed messenger guy."

"That's him. Messengers. Medicine. Travelers, merchants, thieves. Anybody who uses the roads. That's why you're here, enjoying cabin eleven's hospitality. Hermes isn't picky about who he sponsors." I scowled a bit, that was a bit harsh of him to say to a new kid.

"Have you ever met your dad?" Percy asked.

"Once." He said ominously. I saw Percy eyeing Luke's scar, then Luke looked up and put on a smile. "Don't worry about it, Percy. The campers here, they're mostly good people. After all, we're extended family, right? We take care of our own."

Percy seemed to absorb that information for a bit, then asked, "Clarisse, from the Ares cabin, was joking about us being 'Big Three' material. Then Annabeth.. twice, she said she thought we might be 'the one'. She said I should talk with the Oracle. What was that all about?"

"I hate prophecies." Luke said as he folded his knife. I immediately grew cautious. If there was some prophecy that I didn't know about that could involve Percy, I needed to know.

"What do you mean?"

His face twitched around his scar. "Let's just say I messed some things up for everybody else. The last two years, ever since my trip to the Garden of the Hesperides went sour, Chiron hasn't allowed any more quests. She has been dying to get out into the world. She pestered Chiron so much he finally told her that he already knew her fate. That she wasn't destined to go on a quest yet, he never told her the full thing though. She had to wait until.. somebody special came to the camp."

"Someone special?"

"Don't worry about it, kid. Annabeth always wants to think every new camper is the omen she's been waiting for. Come on, dinner time." Just as he said that, the dinner horn sounded and we filed out to the mess hall pavilion. I finally got a good look at camp as a whole.. There must have been about a hundred campers, a few dozen satyrs, and a dozen assorted wood nymphs and naiads in attendance. That made me suddenly realize that I had to be careful around some of the older satyrs and nymphs. They may look middle aged or young, but they would have been living during my first time at camp. They might recognize me. I caught Percy looking at Grover, who was sitting with Dionysus and a few other satyrs, and his sons at table twelve.

"To the gods!" Chiron said as he raised his glass.

"To the gods!"

I squeezed in next to Percy and watched as he filled his glass with Blue Cherry Coke. I decided to do the same, minus the blue. Nick and I would always get those when we could as a treat growing up. Of course back then they weren't made by the company, the vendors mixed them themselves with cherry syrup. It didn't taste as good as it did back then, but it was still a nice treat.

Luke passed us a platter of food and we loaded our plates. I stood with the rest of the cabin, made my offering, and sat back down. Percy sat back down after he was done and we are our meals. After we finished, Dionysus called everyone's attention and made his speech. He mentioned the current standings for Capture the Flag, which caused some cheering and taunts. He then introduced Percy as Peter Johnson, getting corrected. Then we left for the campfire. _The camp campfire, I've missed these._

We all made s'mores and everyone sang the songs. It made me think of happier times, it was a nice change from recently. By the time bed came along I was really tired from all the fighting I did. I hadn't battled like that in ages. I fell asleep pretty quickly considering I was sleeping on the floor.

Over the next couple of days I got to enjoy life back at camp. Yeah, it wasn't _my_ camp per se, all the people who I used to know had come and gone, but the activities still cheered me up a bit. I hadn't wanted to come back so soon, but what happens, happens. I noticed that a lot of the head counselors would watch Percy and I at our different activities to try to gauge who our godly parent was. I found I had a bit longer stamina than Percy distance running, from what I figured was all of that morning jogging around Yancy. He, of course, excelled at canoeing when I failed miserably at it. I made sure to always be in the same canoe as him for a safeguard just to be safe. We also soon found out to keep Percy far, far away from a bow.

I grew worried for Percy. I was worried about Sally too of course, but I needed to bide my time with her to figure out who had her. Percy was desperately grasping for any way to get her back. I talked with Chiron about her a few times but there weren't many possible solutions until something happened or the other person made themselves known. Percy would look up at the sky sometimes, as if waiting for a sign but huff slightly in frustration when nothing came. I knew the gods weren't always very good at claiming their children, but typically Poseidon was pretty good about it. There had to be some reason for him to not be claiming Percy.

I had to hide most of my soaring pride when Percy started sword fighting for real on Thursday. He had good reflexes and picked up on the transition from stick to sword pretty easily. At one point he had even noticed the similarities, he had said "Hey, Ally. This is kind of like our old stick games, huh?" I had to stop myself from grinning like a crazy person. _That was the idea._

During his first lesson we had eventually broken up into groups focused around different parts of the arena. Luke had put me with another unclaimed kid, Ethan, while he took on Percy. I was a bit concerned about him being alone with Luke though, he had gotten a bit carried away in our first little sparring match, so I kept a close eye on the pair.

Ethan was a slim boy with glossy black hair and brown eyes, well, eye. Over Ethan's left eye was a black eye patch. I wasn't sure what happened to cause him to wear it, but I didn't ask. He seemed good with a sword despite his hindered sight. His style was more centered around defense and striking at inopportune times for his opponents. Luke had Ethan drilling me in different strikes and moves while he battered Percy. He was taking it a bit rough just as I had feared for his first lesson.

After a while of practice Luke called break and we gathered around to get water. Percy looked pretty tired so I suggested he take a good drink of water. I knew the water would refresh him, I had seen the Poseidon kids in the past use water as a kind of stimulant in battles to keep them going longer or help their fighting. He took my advice, even going as far as to dump the water over his head like Luke. _Well that will get him going._ Percy looked instantly better, not as slumped as before and he held the tip of his sword a little higher instead of letting it drag on the ground.

We then moved on to dueling in pairs. Luke announced that Percy would help him demonstrate a move and I heard a few whispers.

"Good luck with that," I heard one of the campers whisper faintly, "Luke's the best swordsman in the last three hundred years."

The way Luke had said it didn't leave much choice for Percy to back out. I nodded encouragingly at Percy and gestured for him to get into a fighting stance. Everyone was now gathered around the two, suppressing smiles. Luke was demonstrating a disarming technique that I had learned a while back and was one of my old favorites. It had provided to be very useful. It used the flat of your blade to hit and twist away your opponents weapon.

"This is difficult," Luke stressed after showing the move in slow motion. "I've had it used against me. No laughing at Percy, now. Most swordsmen have to work for years to master this. Now in real time, we will keep sparring until one of us pulls it off. Ready, Percy?" Percy nodded a bit reluctantly and Luke went at him.

Percy was managing to keep Luke's sword away from the base of his and I saw the change in his awareness after the water. He started countering and even took an experimental jab at Luke. Luke deflected it bit I saw a change in his face, not unlike the one I saw on him in our own fight. His eyes narrowed and he pressed Percy with more force. I saw Percy starting to slow down and silently willed him to try to make one last push. Then, like a miracle, he pulled it off. He caused Luke's sword to clatter to the ground and aimed his sword at his chest. Everyone went silent while I contained a loud cheer I so badly wanted to shout to his victory.

"Um, sorry." Percy said, a bit embarrassed as he lowered his weapon.

"Sorry? By the gods, Percy, why are you sorry? Show me that again!" Luke said, his face breaking into a grin. Reluctantly Percy went at it again but I could tell his burst of energy was gone and he was easily disarmed.

Friday afternoon I accompanied Percy to sitting by the lake with Grover after an attempt at the climbing wall. I was severely out of practice and nearly got burnt to a crisp. I hadn't had any ways of keeping up with that type of skill in my time away from camp. I lay a little ways away from the two of them, off the pier and on the grass a decent distance away from the water but still close enough to hear them talk. I lay there, eyes closed, and just enjoyed the sun in my face. I wasn't too surprised to hear about Grover's dream of becoming a searcher - a lot of satyrs shared that dream. My ears perked up a bit at their conversation about quests but the sun was making me sleepy. I must have either zoned out or dozed off because I woke to Percy and Grove talking about the empty cabins and my father.

"When we say the Big Three, we mean the three powerful brothers, the sons of Kronos."

"Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades, right?"

"Yeah, you know, after the great battle with the Titans, they took over the world from their dad and drew lots."

"Zeus the sky, Poseidon the sea, and Hades the Underworld?"

"Right."

"But Hades doesn't have a cabin here." Percy pointed out. I frowned a bit from my spot on the grass, that was still a bit of a sore topic for me and similar cases for the minor god's children.

"No. He doesn't have a throne on Olympus, either. He sort of does his own thing down in the Underworld. If he did have a cabin here.." I peaked my eye open to see Grover shudder. "Well, it wouldn't be pleasant. Let's leave it at that." I scowled. _It wouldn't be that bad, right? I know some of us can be a bit, scary, but not all of us are like that. Maybe if we actually had a cabin we wouldn't have to fend for ourselves and grow to hate. That hate was one of the big things that caused the war.._

"But Zeus and Poseidon- they both had, like, a bazillion kids in the myths. Why are their cabins empty?" That question was one I was still trying to get out of Chiron. I saw Grover shift uncomfortably.

"About sixty years ago, after World War II, the Big Three agreed they wouldn't sire any more heroes. Their children were just too powerful. They were affecting the course of human events too much, causing too much carnage. World War II, that was basically a fight between the sons of Zeus and Poseidon on one side, and the sons of Hades on the other. Demigods chose sides, battles were fought."

After a short pause of what I assumed to be him thinking, he continued. "There is actually a story of a young daughter of Hades on our side, but she was killed before the war was through. She had apparently been hiding here but helped camp as an unclaimed kid. Something happened, I think, and an older camper went and killed her while they were on a mission together. I don't know the full story, but Chiron and some of the older satyrs who were alive at the time do. It was a bad war, lots of deaths, even the younger demigods were dragged into it against the attempts of everyone. Anyway, the winning side was Zeus and Poseidon. They made Hades swear an oath with them: no more affairs with mortal women. They all swore on the River Styx."

"Wow, harsh." Percy said and I had to stop myself from doing something that might give myself away as thunder boomed. Tears threatened to come when I heard the mention of me. I figured I would just get a funeral and that would be the end of it, but to know that it was actually a kind of noteworthy thing, that some people knew about me? Nick had promised he wouldn't let me be forgotten, but this? Then the thing about the oath though. _This_ is what Chiron was hiding from me? Was that why Alecto was sent after Percy, because he was an illegal child? This was why Poseidon wasn't claiming him? It made me wonder if I was considered one too. Technically, I was born before the oath, but I was alive now. That complicated things.

"That is the most serious oath you can make. And the brothers, they kept their word?"

I saw the side of Grover's face that I could see from my position turn dark as he retold the story of Thalia. I was appalled to hear about what my father did, it wasn't Thalia's fault she was born a child of Zeus, she didn't deserve that kind of life - nobody did, well, except for a select few. Then I thought that maybe, my father had a thing for children of Zeus after what happened with Chester and I. That thought made me feel sick. Was it my fault she had that kind of life? No, my father probably wouldn't have held a grudge about something like that, I was just one of his different kids, but then again, you never know. Children of his are typically known to hold grudges, and the apple can't fall far from the tree.

I at least found out where that giant pine tree at the top of the hill had sprouted from. The conversation then turned to the Underworld, I tried to pay attention but there were just so many thoughts swirling around in my head. I wasn't too happy about the idea I could tell Percy was nursing, I would have to talk to him about that, or Chiron. As much as I wanted to rescue Sally, we didn't know where she was, and Percy didn't even know for sure that she was dead either. If he went on a trip to the Underworld for no reason... well I didn't want to think about that.

Grover went on to explain about satyrs at schools and then I almost laughed despite what I had been feeling with all the new information I had gathered. He said that Percy might be a son of Nemesis or something. Nemesis was a goddess, not a god. Sally was his mother.

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As always, if you find any typos or things of that nature, please notify me.

**Question of this week:** What made you continue reading up to this point?


	14. Chapter 14: Capture the Flag

**AN 6/13/15: **Hey, so thanks for the feedback to the two of you who had replied thus far. It is greatly appreciated. Here is this update. I just got back from the barn (I ride horses for those of you who haven't looked at my profile), and inside one of the large covered ring buildings by the stables I found two baby birds. They were so pretty and young, but their nest had fallen from its place and onto the ground. The one was already dead, wings spread out like it tried to fly, its sibling was by it on the ground too. It was alive still, but its leg looked broken, and that was just what I could visibly see. It was opening its beak weakly, almost like "Help me, mama". It was so sad.. we ended up bringing them out to the grass in an open area to let the one be in peace and go comfortably. I still feel like I should have done more but I could only so so much. I think I am going to include them somehow, maybe, in an upcoming chapter I am writing for a later part in this series.. if only to be able to figuratively give them a proper send off and due respect. It was heart breaking to have to find them and see them. I ended up crying while I was on the horse but we can only do so much... Anyway, I hope you guys had a better start to your weekend, and sorry for the wall of text up here. I just felt I needed to bring them up, as a respect kind of thing, in its own way. I hope the first one went quickly and the its sibling will go without any pain.

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"Allison, would you come with me for a moment?" Chiron beckoned me before dinner ended and we slipped away into the Big House. I wasn't entirely sure why he wanted to talk with me right now, Capture the Flag was about to start and we had to get geared up, but I had followed anyways. I hadn't had the chance to talk with him after what I heard from Grover by the lake earlier, but now wasn't the time to start a conversation about it. I followed him through the house and into his office, looking around at the walls and seeing a collection of pictures of his past students dating all the way back to the 1800's by the look of it. Before then were paintings of demigods.

"What did you need Chiron? The game is about to start." Chiron was at his desk, he had opened a drawer and pulled out a small box. It was a simple little thing, like you would see people put jewelry in. He then turned to me and held it out.

"I found this earlier today, I thought you might like to have a look." I eyed the box for a moment before taking it. I slowly opened it, glancing at him curiously, a small glint of hope daring to ebb its way into my mind.

Inside was a familiar silver and black bracelet, one that I thought I would never see again. Then there was the silver circular base with its Pegasus charm in its center, the familiar words engraved into its face. I pulled it out by the cord gingerly, placing the box on the desk. I tugged at the pendant. In my hands was now the knife I had used on my last mission. I clutched it in my hand.

Below where the necklace had been was a picture that brought tears to my eyes. It held the image of two kids, no older than twelve. The boy had light brown hair and bright blue eyes, the other was of myself. His arm was slung over my shoulder and we were both laughing at something happening behind the photographer. He had his golden looking celestial bronze sword sticking out of the dirt next to him, hand resting on the hilt. You could see the leather of our camp necklaces around our necks.

"Nick," I murmured. I looked up at Chiron and he was looking down at me sadly. "Chiron, I don't.." I didn't know what to say. Here were three pieces of my old life, tangible real items: my trusted weapons and a picture of me and my best childhood friend; the one who I had died to protect. The two of us had been thrown neck deep into war together. We were so young, after we were in it we stuck close to each other. In a world so messed up we had to, being put into that kind of position really had an effect on us. There had been so little hope back then, whole nations were tearing at each other's throats. Kids should never have to live through war, but that was one of the horrors of human life. Countless children through the world's history had lived through the atrocities of war, their childhoods taken from them so early. Forcing them to grow up too soon.

I slipped my bracelet over my wrist - it still fit perfectly. I then turned my dagger back into its necklace form and put it over my head, adjusting the slip knots so it was at a decent length. Seeing these again made me think of all the bad times. The tough exterior I had been holding onto for so long finally broke. It was like a dam breaking, Chiron saw this and pulled me into a hug. I just stayed there, letting it all out for I don't know how long. I had pent up so many things, keeping that exterior firm to keep myself going.

"I can't believe you kept these after all these years. Thank you, this means so much to me." I whispered after I had calmed down enough.

"I had a feeling that their work was not quite done yet." He said as he patted my back, his words eerily similar to my last conversation with Nick. I stepped back and put the picture in the box for safekeeping, briefly wiping my eyes, already putting back up that exterior. I stored the box in my back pocket.

"Well then, let's play some Capture the Flag? I can go for some kind of release right about now, maybe beat up a few monsters in the woods even." He nodded. It was nice to have something familiar again, even if it came with a bit of a sour note. I wouldn't be able to use them, not without letting it be known who I am.

I ran back out to where the campers were gathered, all of them choosing their weapons and armoring up. I made sure I had my steel knife concealed on my person, you never know when you might need it. I ran up to the blue team's tables and found Percy. He was trying to put on his armor with little success, the straps coming undone whenever he moved to fix another.

"Here, let me get that for you." He looked back at me, just realizing my presence.

"Oh hey, Allison! Thanks. Hey, are you okay? Your eyes look a bit red."

"Yeah, I'm just fine Percy. Come on, let's win this game." I finished the last strap on his armor and moved on to strap on my own chest plate after grabbing a sword and helmet from the table on my way. The helmet was a bit big but it would work.

As we were moving toward the group of campers who had finished gearing up, Luke walked up to us. He looked kind of intimidating in his armor, sword sheathed at his side. He looked like he had played a lot of these games before.

"Are we really supposed to use these?" Percy asked, still unsure about the whole concept of using actual weapons, gesturing to his gear.

"Unless you want to get skewered by your friends in cabin five. Here, Chiron thought these would fit you guys." Luke handed us two shields, both with a big caduceus in the middle. Percy was having some trouble holding his up while Luke said, "You two are going to be on border patrol."

"Blue team, forward!" Annabeth yelled from the front of the group. Everyone cheered and shook their swords, getting psyched up for the game and followed her down the path to the south woods. The other team was yelling taunts at us as they headed north. I saw Clarisse whispering to some of her siblings, eyeing Percy and I. _Let them try._ I glared right back at her.

I noticed Percy had trotted up to the lead and was talking alongside Annabeth. They had a brief conversation, then she pushed ahead, leaving Percy to drift back to where I was. He explained what Annabeth had said about Clarisse and where we would be guarding. We were soon lead to a little creek that gurgled over some rocks, then were left alone as the rest of the team scattered into the woods. It was a warm, sticky night. The woods were dark but there were fireflies around the bushes and near the leaves of the trees. After a minute or so the conch horn sounded and the game began.

Apollo kids passed us by a little ways away, running through the forest with practiced ease, their bows held at the ready as they entered red team's territory. Aside from that brief sighting, Percy and I were alone with the cicadas being the only sound to accompany the distant sound of clanking of metal from the different fights.

"I feel like such an idiot, we're just standing here." Percy complained, but it was more of a passing comment. Then, out of the darkness came a low, canine growl from somewhere close by. Percy looked at me and I got into a better fighting position, raising my sword and shield, steadying my stance. It felt like we were being stalked. The hairs on the back of my neck began to rise. Percy raised his shield too but then the growling stopped, the presence retreating.

"Allison.." Just then on the other side of the creek the underbrush exploded, fireflies spiraling away from the crash zone. About seven Ares kids came yelling and screaming out of the dark with Clarisse at their lead. _How the heck did they approach that quietly? They're Ares kids!_

"Cream the punks!" she screamed. She was brandishing a five-foot-long spear, its barbed metal top flickering with red electricity.

"Move!" I shouted to Percy. He jumped out of the way as I launched my shield at the group. It spin through the air frisbee-style and struck one kid in the helmet, making him topple over and the two kids who were behind him fall like dominos before they could stop themselves.

"Watch the spear, Percy! I'll take Clarisse, you guard and knock out as many as you can!" I shouted to Percy, we went back to back as the group closed in around us. They had a murderous look in their eyes.

"Wow, does the newbie think she's all that? Calling out orders? Hah, you got lucky with my siblings earlier, punk. I've been here for way longer than you. You think you can take _me_ on?" Clarisse taunted, her pig like eyes glaring through the slits of her helmet. There was no help in sight. _Damn it all, they set us up here to pull her away from the game! _I cursed under my breath.

"No, I've got a bone to pick with toilet boy here, he's going to pay for his little water trick! You four keep Miss. Macho away. You three guard me and get your butts off the ground for Zeus's sake!" she ordered. Soon I found myself trying to keep away four attackers while I watched Percy battle Clarisse, two of her brothers throwing in taunting strikes every now and then. I heard a loud _POP!_ and saw Percy fall back out of the corner of my eye, his shield falling away, his arm looking stiff. Clarisse had her spear out as if she had just hit him with it. She and her brothers were laughing at him and one slammed Percy in the chest with the butt of his sword. This situation was bad, there was no way I could keep this many Ares kids off without a miracle.

"Give him a haircut," Clarisse laughed. "Grab his hair." _Oh, she is _so_ dead. _I could feel the shadows gathering around me, probably making me look more menacing I figured once I saw two of the Ares kids I was fighting step back a bit, eyes widening. _Screw this, I need my knife._ I ducked under a thrust and snatched my steel knife out from its hiding spot. _I have to get to him._ With the addition of my knife I made quick work of two of my opponents, knocking them out with hits to the head. I hit a third in the back of the legs with the broad side of my sword as I turned to block an incoming strike at my arm. The boy fell to the ground, clutching his leg. I had acquired a few scratches and minor cuts, but I didn't pay them any mind. Even with this I was still getting overwhelmed, I was way out of practice from what I used to be against this many fighters. I was still basing some of my decisions on my old standards of ability so that ended up getting me hit more times than necessary.

I saw Percy manage to get to his feet, raising his sword, but Clarisse slammed it aside with her spear and sparks flew. I saw Percy's arm go slack, his other moving with difficulty.

"Oh, wow," she taunted. "I'm scared of this guy. Real scared."

"Just you wait Clarisse, once I get over there you are going to wish you were facing the rest of your siblings!" While I was distracted one of my opponents slashed the back of my right leg, it was the boy on the ground. I stumbled and held back a cry, ducking to avoid another strike.

"Hey! No maiming! The flag is that way, why don't you go get it?" Percy yelled after seeing me falter. My other two opponents tried to take advantage of my slipup, one managing to hilt slam my stomach but I quickly went on an all defensive battle strategy after I scrabbled back up. My right leg stung like crazy and I could feel the cut very well. My stomach ached from that hit too, even if it was muted from my armor, these kids were pissed.

"Yeah," One of the siblings who was beating up Percy said, "But see, we don't care about the flag. We care about the kids who made our cabin look stupid."

"You do that without our help," Percy retorted. _Smart move, Percy. Very smart: provoke our attackers even further. _I felt like I could whack him in the back of the head for that later, hard. One of the boys I knocked out was now up again and fighting me. _Thick skull.._

Clarisse and her buddies went at him, he backed up toward the creek, scooping up his shield and trying to raise it to block. Clarisse was too fast though, her spear struck him straight in the ribs. He would have been impaled had he not been wearing his armor. I saw electricity arch from the spear and into Percy. One of the siblings slashed his sword across Percy's arm, leaving a good sized cut. Percy looked woozy from seeing his own blood.

"Oops," The guy sneered. "Guess I just lost my dessert privilege." _Once I get Chiron on your butts that will be the last of your worries, kid._ He then shoved Percy into the creek, making him land with a splash. I suppressed a grin, that had been exactly what we needed. I worked on trying to finish off my own opponents, kicking at the downed kid I had knocked in the legs for good measure as I saw Percy get up and lay the beat down on his attackers. I disarmed my opponent and hit him in the head with the flat of my blade and knocked out the downed kid with my knife. I then brought around my sword and nailed the other kid in the back of the head again with the flat side of the blade. Both of them crumpled to the ground. I made my way over to where Percy was just in time to have him snap Clarisse's spear like a twig.

"Ah!" She screamed. "You idiot! You corpse-breathed worm!" Percy shut her up by smacking her between the eyes with the hilt of his sword. She stumbled back and landed in the creek.

"Serves you right, Clarisse." I told her as I heard elated screams. Luke ran past us toward the boundary line with the red team's banner lifted high. He was flanked by a couple of Hermes kids, I recognized Ethan on the left. The Ares kids who we had battled were struggling to get up after waking up and Clarisse muttered a curse.

"A trick!" She shouted. "It was a trick!" The ones who were able to stand staggered after Luke but it was too late. Everybody converged on the creek as Luke ran across into friendly territory. Our side exploded with cheers as the banner shimmered into the Hermes flag. People from our team picked up Luke and paraded him around. I looked to Percy's arm to see his cut had been almost healed. _Just what I was counting on. _I leaned on Percy, taking the weight off my leg and put my knife back so it wasn't visible. Chiron cantered out of the woods and blew the horn, we had won.

From next to us came Annabeth's voice, "Not bad, heroes." We looked but she wasn't there. "Where the heck did you learn to fight like that?" She asked us. The air shimmered and she materialized, holding a Yankees baseball cap like she had just taken it off. "Then you, Allison, holding off and taking down _four_ Ares kids for that long in your first game, impressive."

I scowled, she was the one who had put Percy and I up as the distraction. The two "newbies" in their first week as bait for the lead Ares campers. An amazing welcome.

"You set us up," Percy had caught on too. "You put us here because you knew Clarisse would come after us. Then you sent Luke around the flank, you had it all figured out."

She just shrugged, "I told you; Athena always has a plan."

"A plan to get us killed. Look at that cut on Allison's leg, that's because of your all mighty plan!"

"I came here as fast as I could. I was about to jump in, but.." She shrugged again. "You didn't need help." Then she noticed Percy's previously wounded arm. "How did you do that?"

"Sword cut, what do you think?"

"No. It _was_ a sword cut. Look at it." The blood was gone and all that was left of it was just a slight white line that itself was fading.

"I-I don't get it," Percy said. I have a feeling we will find out soon." I said, trying to ease the tension. Annabeth looked at me quizzically, then told Percy to step out of the water. He tried to protest but she got him to step out, shifting my weight onto my other leg as he left.

Once he stepped out of the creek a wave of exhaustion hit him. He almost fell over but we steadied him.

"Oh, Styx.." Annabeth cursed. "This is _not_ good. I didn't want.. I assumed it would be Zeus.."

"What's so bad about-" I was cut off by that growl again, but this time it was much closer. A howl ripped through the forest. The campers cheering instantly died. Chiron shouted, Annabeth drew her sword as I started to push Percy behind me, pulling out my sword and grabbing my knife to throw if needed. Then on the top of the rocks just above us, a massive hellhound the size of a rhino appeared. Its lava-red eyes zeroing in on Percy. Nobody moved except for Annabeth, who yelled at us to run. I went to shove Percy out of the way as Annabeth tried stepping in front of the hellhound, but it was too fast.

It leaped over Annabeth and hit us head on. I stumbled backward, landing on Percy partly and ended up taking the brunt of the attack. The hound's razor-sharp claws ripped through our armor. I heaved my sword around to cut its head off as a cascade of thwacking sounds sounded from the direction of the campers. Clusters of arrows sprouted from its neck as my sword cleaved into it. The hound fell dead on the ground beside us.

"_Di immortales!"_ Annabeth said. "That was a hellhound from the Fields of Punishment. They don't.. they're not supposed to.."

"Someone summoned it," Chiron said while quickly gathering medical supplies, nectar, and ambrosia for us. I groaned and rolled off Percy, one hand supporting my weight and the other pressing against the cuts and a particularly bad gash. "Someone inside camp." Luke came over, banner in his hand forgotten, his moment of glory gone. Clarisse yelled about how it was our fault, but she was quickly shushed as Chiron came over.

"Percy, get in the water." I whispered. He started to ask why when Annabeth cut in from above us.

"You're wounded," _Duh._ "Quick, Percy, get in the water." She had the same idea as me.

"I'm okay." He insisted, starting to get up.

"No, you're not. Chiron, watch this." Chiron looked up from treating me to see Percy step back into the creek. The cuts on his chest started closing up, some campers gasped. _If only I could heal like that. _My wounds were quickly becoming more painful as the adrenaline wore off. The cut on my leg was now covered in dirt too.

"Look, I-I don't know why," He started trying to apologize, but they weren't watching his wounds heal anymore. Everyone was now staring at the glowing green trident above his head. I smiled knowingly, he was finally claimed.

"Percy, um.." Annabeth pointed up. He looked just in time to see the fading trident.

"Your father." Annabeth murmured. "This is _really_ not good."

"It is determined," Chiron announced. All around us campers started kneeling, even the Ares cabin, albeit grudgingly.

"My father?" Percy asked, completely bewildered.

"Poseidon," said Chiron. "Earthshaker, Stormbringer, Father of horses. Hail, Perseus Jackson, Son of the Sea God."

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Thanks for reading, have a nice weekend and week until I see you guys next.


	15. Chapter 15: A Quest

**AN 6/19/15:** Thanks for reading. I hope this chapter gives you a little more insight on some of Allison's conflicts. I might release the next chapter sooner but I do like posting on Fridays - Sundays.

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The next morning Percy was moved to cabin three. He had the cabin all to himself but I could tell he was lonely. He would visit me in the infirmary a couple times a day, or on the porch of the Big House, and we would just sit and talk really. He would ask me how I was feeling, I would say okay. I would ask how his day was going, he would reply that it was going okay too.

Percy was being singled out though, and that ticked me off. Campers had started avoiding him. Nobody mentioned the hellhound to us, but I knew they were talking about it behind our backs. Percy and I agreed that that hound had sent two messages; one was that he was the Son of Poseidon, and two; monsters would stop at nothing to kill him.

Percy got one-on-one sword training with Luke and he was pushing him too hard. I wanted to be able to supervise his lesson to make sure Luke didn't go too overboard but Chiron had limited me to staying just around the Big House. Clarisse and her cabin were a bit grumpy to say the least after what happened during the game and I had made sure to tell Chiron about their stunt. They had earned their cabin a new list of chores.

One morning Percy came storming into the infirmary, clutching a crumpled up newspaper in his hand. He threw it down on my bedside table and pulled up a chair. I read through the paper and knew I had just another person on my list of people to sort out (it was comprised out of the a large majority of Ares cabin). Someone was messing with him, and if I found out who, Chiron would be the least of their worries, injuries be damned.

Percy then told me about a disturbing dream he had the night before. It was eerily similar to the dream I had on the night of the Minotaur attack. All that really changed was that there was no voice and the setting was different, but still the ocean. I thought back to what that voice had said, taunting me, saying that I couldn't save my loved ones and how I could be of use to it. I refused to be "of use" to anything that had chained me up, killed Nick in my dreams, and or hinted about being the cause of my death.

Grover soon came in and said that Dionysus wanted to see him. Nothing good would come of that encounter so I persuaded Percy to help me come with him. I had to ask Chiron about what Grover mentioned by the lake, the pact of the Big Three and about Ruthie, the Oracle from my time. I had so many unanswered questions. Over Long Island Sound the sky was hazy, a curtain of rain coming in our direction. Percy asked if we needed an umbrella, Grover nervously reassured him but it felt like he was more reassuring himself. This storm was coming at us head on, bearing down on the valley that Camp resided in.

We walked up the front porch of the Big House to find Dionysus playing pinochle at the table with Chiron and two invisible opponents.

"Well, well," he said, his gaze never leaving the game. "Our little celebrity and his friend."

We paused hesitantly, not daring to come any closer to the god unless invited, Dionysus was clearly in a mood. "Come closer, and don't expect me to kowtow to you, mortal, just because old Barnacle-Beard is your father." A net of lightning flashed across the clouds, thunder rattling the windows of the house.

"Blah, blah, blah." Chiron was feigning interest in his cards while Grover cowered by the railing.

"If I had it my way, I would cause your molecules to erupt in flames. We'd sweep up the ashes and be done with a lot of trouble." I scowled and realized I was fingering my bracelet. I had left the sword I had somewhat claimed since the game back at my bed in the infirmary. Chiron shot me a warning look and I stopped, leaning back against the railing to help ease the tenseness in my muscles. "But Chiron seems to feel this would be against my mission at this infernal camp; to keep you brats safe from harm."

"Spontaneous combustion _is_ a form of harm, Mr. D."

"Nonsense," Dionysus argued. "Boy wouldn't feel a thing. Nevertheless, I've agreed to restrain myself; I'm thinking of turning you into a dolphin instead and sending you back to your father."

"Mr. D-"

"Oh, all right, no dolphins." He relented. "There is one more option, but it is deadly foolishness." Dionysus rose, the invisible player's cards dropped. "I'm off to Olympus for the emergency meeting. If the boy is still here when I get back, I'll turn him into an Atlantic bottlenose. Do you understand? And Mr. Jackson, if you're at all smart, you'll see that's the much more sensible choice than what Chiron feels you must do." Dionysus then picked up a card, making like it was a security pass. He snapped his fingers and all that was left was the smell of fresh-pressed grapes.

Chiron smiled at us, laying down his cards, but it was strained. I used to see that kind of smile very frequently back in the day, the war on and missions going out being the key causes.

"Sit, Percy, Allison please. You too, Grover." We did, Percy helping me ease myself into a chair, then sitting down himself.

"Tell me, Percy. What did you make of the hellhound?" I saw him suppress a slight shudder.

"It scared me," he said. "If you hadn't taken care of it, Allison and I would be dead."

"You'll meet worse, Percy. Far worse, before you are done."

"Chiron," I warned, not liking his tone. "What are you getting at? Why would it be just Percy? If he is going somewhere I am not letting him go alone." Chiron looked at me, taking in my bandaged appearance. There had been no magic water healing for me. I heard the slight sound of something on the wood, turning my head slightly to hear it better, but it stopped as suddenly and quietly as it had started.

"Allison, I know you want to keep him safe, but at the moment you cannot go, it would be very unsafe for your heath to let you go out." I scowled, I could go out if I needed to, just pack me some ambrosia and nectar and I'll be set. I had lived off of far less before and I could do the same now. There was no way I would let Percy go out on his own.

"Out? Out where?" Percy asked.

"Your quest of course. Should you accept it." I saw Grover crossing his fingers to my side. I then realized that this must be his second chance to prove himself, after what he mentioned at the lake.

"Um, sir. You haven't told me what it is yet."

Chiron grimaced. "Well, that's the hard part, the details."

Thunder rumbled across the valley. The storm clouds had now reached the edge of the beach. It looked as if the sky and sea were boiling together, almost like my dream.

"Poseidon and Zeus," Percy guessed. "They're fighting over something valuable.. something that was stolen, aren't they?" Chiron and Grover exchanged looks. _Spot on._ Chiron sat forward in his wheelchair.

"How did you know that?"

He looked embarrassed but explained his reasoning, mentioning his dreams.

"I knew it," Grover exclaimed.

"Hush." Chiron ordered.

"But it's his quest!" Grover's eyes were bright with excitement. "It must be!"

"Only the Oracle can determine that." Chiron stroked his beard. "Nevertheless, Percy, you are correct. Your father and Zeus are having their worst quarrel in centuries. They are fighting over something very valuable that was stolen. To be precise: the master bolt." _Chiron, I swear if you are doing what I think you're doing.. _I stared into his old eyes, pleading with him not to do this.

"The what?" Percy laughed nervously.

"Do not take this lightly, Chiron warned. "I'm not talking about some tinfoil-covered zigzag you'd see in a second-grade play. I'm talking about a two-foot-long cylinder of high-grade celestial bronze, capped on both ends with god-level explosives."

Percy paled. "Oh."

"Zeus's master bolt," Chiron said, getting worked up. "The symbol of his power, from which all other lightning bolts are patterned. The first weapon made by the Cyclopes in the Titan War. The bolt that sheared the top off of Mount Etna and hurled Kronos from his throne; the master bolt. It packs enough power to make mortal hydrogen bombs look like firecrackers." The air seemed to grow colder at the mention of the Titan. I felt a cold niggling in the back of my head.

"And its missing?"

"Stolen,"

"By who?"

"By _whom,_" Chiron corrected, that teacher still in him. "By you." My mouth dropped. He really just said that..

"At least"-Chiron held up a hand-"that's what Zeus thinks." He went on to explain about the winter solstice meeting and Zeus's theories about Poseidon. At one point I tried to butt in but was cut off by Percy calling Zeus crazy. _That's just one select word I can use to describe him._ They all glanced up at the sky nervously, the storm wasn't parting around the valley. It was rolling straight over us, sealing us in.

"Er, Percy...?" Grover cautioned. "We don't use _c_-word to describe the Lord of the Sky."

"Perhaps _paranoid,_" Chiron suggested. "Then again, Poseidon has tried to unseat Zeus before. I believe that was question thirty-eight on your final exam." Leave it to Chiron to remember that type of information. He looked at us as if he really expected us to remember that. But the idea of _Percy_ of all people stealing the King of the Gods symbol of power was such an unfathomable idea. Percy, who could barely sneak into my candy stash without my noticing, being blamed for this.

"Something about a golden net?" Percy guessed. "Poseidon and Hera, and a few other gods.. they like, trapped Zeus and wouldn't let him go until he promised to be a better ruler, right?" _So much for that._

"Correct, and Zeus has never trusted Poseidon since. Of course, Poseidon denies stealing the master bolt, he took great offence to the accusation. The two have been at each other's throats threatening war for months. Now you've come along-the proverbial last straw."

"But I'm just a kid."

"Percy, do you _really_ think they care about that? All demigods are basically 'just kids', and you've heard about the different things they have had to go through in the past. What makes you think this time is any different? Demigods hardly ever get to live a long life." I said darkly, not meeting their eyes, anger bubbling up. I saw Chiron send me a mournful look but didn't say anything. I found myself playing with my bracelet even more, it unlatched and lose in my hand. I felt like I had to use it, hoping that I could somehow fix the situation by a simple fight.

"Percy," Grover cut in. "If you were Zeus, and you already thought you were being plotted against, to be overthrown, then your brother suddenly admitted he had broken the sacred oath he took after World War II, that he has fathered another mortal hero who might be used as a weapon against you... Wouldn't that put a twist in your toga?"

That reminded me that I really needed to talk with Chiron about that, he had conveniently left that bit of information out when he had been catching me up. "Chiron, what-" He cut me off. I was getting a bit tired of constantly being interrupted.

"Later, Allison." He shushed. I clenched my fist around my bracelet. He was just writing me off.

"But I didn't do anything. Poseidon-my dad-he didn't really have the master bolt stolen, did he?"

Chiron sighed. "Most thinking observers would agree that thievery is not Poseidon's style, but the Sea God is too proud to try convincing Zeus of that. Zeus has demanded that Poseidon return the bolt by the summer solstice; June twenty-first, ten days from now. Poseidon wants an apology by that same date for being called a thief. I hoped that diplomacy might prevail, that Hera or Demeter, even Hestia would make the two brothers see sense. But your arrival has inflamed Zeus's temper. Now neither god will back down. Unless someone intervenes, unless the master bolt is found and returned to Zeus before the solstice, there will be war. And do you know what a full-fledged war would look like, Percy?"

I closed my eyes and gripped the seat of my chair, letting out a deep breath, feeling myself pale and stomach drop. _There can't be another one, one was enough._ I felt like I could never catch a break, I've already had to deal with one World War, even dying. Now there are threats of war between the gods?

"Imagine a war in chaos, nature at war with itself. Olympians forced to choose sides between Zeus and Poseidon. Destruction. Carnage. Millions dead. Western civilization turned into a battle ground so big it would make the Trojan War look like a water-balloon fight." I held my stomach slightly with one hand, old memories resurfacing. I felt like I was going to be sick. I looked down at the floor, focusing on the wood grain, lost in thought and body numb.

My brain came back to the present as Percy agreed to go on this suicide mission. Chiron sent him up the attic to consult the Oracle. So many emotions were raging in my head, then they boiled over once I thought of Percy getting involved in all this, possibly killed.

"Chiron, tell me about the Oath." I said flatly, leaving no room for debate in my voice. I needed to know all the facts. He sighed but reluctantly told me about it, even mentioning something about a prophecy.

"So there's a prophecy about it then? Well isn't that just great! If there are no Big Three kids, then what happened to N-" He frustratingly cut me off again.

"Allison, I do not believe now is the right time to discuss this. Percy will go on his quest and-"

I felt my anger starting to boil up. I stood abruptly, facing Chiron, not caring if Grover was right there or that my injuries were jarred by the sudden motion. On the contrary the sting actually did me good, it made me more grounded to the present.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Chiron? You're sending him on a suicide mission! You know it is near impossible,_ he_ _just got here._ I have to protect him, but then you send him off on this stupid quest? He is only in the sixth grade, Chiron. Don't you think enough has already happened?" My voice lowered and broke slightly on those last words. I felt the shadows starting to react to my emotions.

"Allison, I know this is a very difficult situation, but this is the only possible solution I can foresee to let us have a chance of stopping this war before it begins. I will not have you go out in the state you are in though." He told me, a warning tone in his voice, casting a glance to Grover.

"I have to protect him, Chiron. Don't you understand that? It can't happen again. But now you send him on this mission to die?" Chiron grabbed my wrist and held it firm.

"Allison-" He started, but I cut him off.

"No, Chiron, don't. " I said harshly, jerking my wrist away. Tears started to well up. I had to protect him, he was all I had now aside from Sally, but she was gone. My old life was long gone. Nick was easily dead by now, my mother, if she was even still alive, growing every closer to death's door and out of reach. I couldn't let there be another war, not after last time. I had to make a difference, I refused to let Percy know what that life was like. I had to be here for a reason, it couldn't just be a fluke after what Atropos had shown me.

"Um... what are you guys talking about? Are you okay, Allison?" Grover looked completely lost and bewildered. He would have no clue what Chiron and I were talking about, but of course he never could know.

"Allison, enough of this." Chiron's face had hardened, telling me to not continue. I felt so frustrated with him, with everything. I thought this time around would be different, but apparently not. Now all this was happening. I realized the shadows were now pooling around my feet but luckily Grover didn't seem to notice.

"Do you _want_ to get another camper killed, Chiron?" I hissed. "To turn out li-" He cut me off.

"Allison, this is the end of it." I could see the hurt in his eyes. That may have been a low blow but I was just so angry and overwhelmed to the point of not caring anymore. I took a deep breath, hands shaking, trying to calm myself down. Grover was here, I couldn't lose control no matter how badly I wanted to. He was a friend but if I said anymore things would get around, as it was I had let out a lot. I tore off my necklace, gripping it with my bracelet and forcefully put them on the table, shoving them at Chiron.

"Thing's will never change, will they? You might as well keep these, Chiron, I have no use for them now." I turned sharply and made my way back to my place in the infirmary, leaving a very confused satyr and sad centaur in my wake.

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_Comment your thoughts :)_


	16. Chapter 16: Dreams and Poodles

**AN 6/28/15: **Hey so I hope you guys had an awesome week. Sorry I haven't had time to post this sooner, I didn't get back until like 1am last night. Anyway, enjoy!

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Later on Percy came in and told me about his prophecy, all of it. He talked about their plan for the quest and its reasoning. I was not happy they blamed my father for the theft, but of course people would always assume him in any bad situation. The idea of a spy in camp though was one to think on. Percy told me about how Annabeth had been there, waiting to volunteer. I cursed myself in my head for my stupidity. She would have been there the whole time, that sound had been her, and she had heard my outburst. I had to be more careful, she was a daughter of Athena, I didn't want her to have any chance to piece together any information. As it was she probably already had ideas.

Percy then placed a small drawstring bag on my bedside table, saying it was from Chiron. Rain had started pouring down from the sky, lightning flashing. Percy then left to go pack, hugging me goodbye and wishing me well. I didn't want to let him go, I wanted to keep him by me forever, safe. He was like my little brother, he just had to stay safe.

I opened the bag after he left to see that it was my bracelet and necklace. I didn't see the point in having them anymore though. They were dead giveaways to the past. I would never be able to use them, if I did I would just become the target of so many gods. I put them back on anyways despite that, a plan forming.

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Between check-ins from the Apollo kids I managed to sneak out back to my spot in the Hermes cabin and I got a hold of my backpack and gear. I packed my bag, taking only what I would need and hid the rest under my bedside table, stashing the bag under my cot. I managed to sneak some nectar, ambrosia, and medical supplies from the infirmary's stocks too, not enough to be noticeable though. I waited until it was starting to get dark to make my move. I was confident enough to know I would be able to manage well enough, even after the hellhound attack and that Ares kid, to not be a liability to the quest group. I grabbed the sword I used for capture the flag and its sheathe, leaving a note for Chiron. I just couldn't stay here and do nothing while they were out there risking their lives, inexperienced. I also made sure to stash my steel knife away with me, you never know when it might come in handy.

I focused in my energy, trying to figure out where the quest would be. I took a few steps toward the wall and sucked myself into the shadows. I felt like I was racing at a million miles per hour in the Alps, it was that cold, the world completely dark. I heard the usual strange sounds that accompanied shadow travel as I forged onward, knowing they came from the creatures that always lurked in the shadows themselves. I was trying to focus in on someplace in New Jersey, just an instinct. I tried to trace the path they may have taken, attempting to zero in on Percy.

I could feel my energy rapidly draining. Just a little bit more, I had to get this right. _There!_ I felt a familiar presence and honed in on it. It had been a while since I shadow traveled like this, to focus in on a person and general location instead of a specific place. I stumbled out of the shadows and fell a few feet down to the ground. I lay there for a moment, catching my breath and moaned slightly from the fall disturbing my cuts, the world spinning. After a few minutes I managed to stand up and realized I was in some sort of forest. The air still had that slight city like hint to it, so I wasn't too far away from civilization.

"Well, time to get moving I guess." I muttered to myself, setting off in my best guess in direction.

* * *

It felt like I had been traveling for hours when in reality it couldn't have been more than half-an-hour. I was just so drained from that jump. Avoiding trees and bushes was fairly easy, luckily. I had never had much trouble seeing in the dark. Soon I heard voices and I hurried to where the noise was coming from, hoping it to be the quest group but readied my sword just in case, ready to grab my knife if it was a dangerous group of mortals. I came closer to a marshy clearing and the voices grew in volume. I found myself stepping around different types of party food and cans, probably from some local high school kids partying judging from the type of litter.

I smiled in relief when I saw three familiar faces in the low light. There were Percy and Grover talking with Annabeth already asleep a little ways off. Percy and Grover looked to be pretty in depth into their conversation so I lingered. I felt bad eavesdropping but I wanted to know what they were talking about so I didn't interrupt something important. They were talking about Grover's dream to find the lost god Pan. I remembered the older satyrs talking about him my first time at camp.

Then they started talking about the quest. _Medusa? Dang, they don't waste any time, that's for sure._ Grover asked Percy to ease off Annabeth a bit too, how she had a rough life before camp. Then he mentioned something about her forgiving him. _For what?_ He went into talking about his last job as keeper briefly. I found myself wondering what could he mean by that. How he had talked about it made it seem like he was Annabeth's keeper. Percy even picked up on it. They were now talking about Alecto though and how they had fought her and the two other Furies on their bus ride over. _Holy crud, all three of them, _and_ Medusa already? This quest is already more dangerous that I thought._

Grover insisted on taking first watch, putting Percy to sleep with some music from his reed pipes and I found myself fighting to stay awake. I decided to come out of the trees and reveal myself now that Percy was asleep. Hopefully I wouldn't be questioned too much with just Grover awake, I didn't want them getting all worked up about me being here this soon if I could prevent it.

"Hey, Grover." I called out, stepping out of the dark tree line. Grover's head snapped in my direction and his mouth dropped.

"Allison! What are you doing here? Chiron said you were supposed to stay in the infirmary. How did you even get here, or let alone know where we were?" He jumped down from his branch and came over to me, checking me over for any additional damage I may have gotten in transit.

"Yeah.. about that. I just couldn't let you guys go at it alone. Plus, I need to help Percy. He is like my brother. Aside from him and Sally, I don't really have anyone else. With Sally gone.. well, I can't lose Percy too. I can't imagine it if he were gone as well, let alone a war between the gods. I can deal with Chiron when we get back."

"But, you're as new to this as Percy is. Then sneaking out with those cuts still not healed yet from the game!" He bleated nervously as he scolded me. He was freaking out, and I could see why. Here comes along another "new" demigod to take care of and keep safe on top of this death mission he was already on.

"Look, Grover. Just trust me, _please._ As to how I got here, let's just say I hitched a ride." I said, I obviously couldn't tell him about shadow travel. "I just know that I needed to be here, I can't let you all get yourselves killed."

"Um.. Allison, no offence, but you are a newbie too. Even though you seem to be a decent fighter, and I don't know what all that at the Big House was earlier, but you would be more of a liability." He said nervously.

I looked at him, if only he knew... "Look, Grover. You have to trust me on this. I know how to help. Look, I'm really tired, can we please just talk about this in the morning? I'm like dead on my feet here."

"Oh, uh, yeah. Of course. Here, let me grab you a blanket." He trotted off to where some blankets were piled up, I assumed for him. He picked one up and came back over to me, handing it over.

"Thanks, man. I'll talk to you in the morning." I slung off my backpack and unlatched my sword from its belt, placing them on the ground by Percy. I tried to fluff up my backpack a little to make it a better pillow and laid down. I caught Grover murmuring to himself, shaking his head slightly. I pulled the blanket up over me and fell asleep almost instantly, sword hidden next to me under the fabric.

In my dream I was at the edge of a vast pit in a dark cavern. _The Underworld._ Grey mist appeared, floating around the pit, spirits of the dead. They were tugging at my clothes, trying to pull me away from the pit. _Tartarus, _I gasped. Then that chilling, ancient voice filled my head again, the same one from my previous dreams.

_"The little heroine." _It said in an amused voice from deep down in the pit. _"Very weak, very young, but you will be of use." _That heavy voice wrapped around me, weighing me down.

_"They have mislead you, girl. Barter with me. I will give you what you want if you work with me."_ An image appeared, hovering over the void. They were faces that I knew very, very well. The first one, all the way to the left was Sally. She was frozen at the last moment I saw her, still being choked to death. To the far right was my mother. Actually seeing her made my heart break. I couldn't imagine all of the terrible things she had gone through after hearing about my fate. My eyes stung. Her hair was fanned out around her and she was wearing one of her favorite house dresses, but her face was twisted, pained. It hurt me to see her like that, what I did to her all those years ago by leaving her alone..

In the center is what really made me cry, it was Nick. He looked worse than he did than in my last moments. He looked gaunt and had a haunted look in his eyes, but it felt like this was new. Like he had only recently started looking like this, or it was a representation from my worst fears for him. He was looking directly at me, into my eyes, the lightning in his eyes that I had always claimed he had was gone.

"Nick," I choked out.

_"Ahh, yes. The child of Zeus. An odd friendship you had there, A child of the hated brother of the _Big Three_, being friends with a child of the _King of Olympus." The voice spat out with hate.

_"The gods have never done anything to aid you. You were born to them into a world of hate and pain. You died at such a young age, yes? Don't you feel resentful of the gods? Making you live that life? Help me rise." _The voice became hungrier. "_Bring me the bolt. Strike a blow against those treacherous gods!" _

The spirits of the dead around me were pulling at me harder, trying to get me away from the pit, urging me to wake up. The images of my family faded and the hold that the voice had on my conscious tightened. It was trying to pull itself out of Tartarus while simultaneously pulling me in.

_Who are you?_ I managed to ask, but there was just a haunting laugh in response. The pull magnified and I felt myself slipping. I frantically tried to reach out and grab a hold of something but I was pulled over the edge. I screamed as I started falling, the darkness of the pit pulsing around me and growing stronger, making me see things I had hoped to never see again. It was almost like the nothingness that encompassed me after I had died, but more malevolent. Images of the missions I had been on flashed before me, the battles and the things I had seen and done.

I was being shaken and my eyes snapped open. I reached for my sword, sliding it partly out of its sheathe, jerking upright to be prepared for an attack. My stomach hurt and my eyes stung.

"Whoa there, calm down. It's just me." Annabeth said, putting a hand on my shoulder to stead my. I looked around to see Percy awake a little ways off, packing up his bag. He hadn't notice me wake up. I lowered my sword, letting out a deep breath.

"Are you okay? You were crying and shaking in your sleep, you looked like you were having a pretty bad nightmare.." Her voice was lowered, concern in her eyes, but they also held a slight glimmer of the chance for more knowledge. I knew she wanted to ask more but was stopping herself.

"It was nothing.. just bad memories, that's all." I said, barely audibly, my voice hoarse and I wiped my eyes slightly. "Did Percy notice?"

She looked back to Percy. "He noticed that you were here, but he wanted to let you sleep. You looked exhausted. Then I heard you starting to say some stuff and you were shaking, but no, he didn't notice. Just me." She reassured. "Here, let me check your cuts, they got a bit aggravated while you were sleeping by the looks of it." I sat up and let Annabeth check me over. She redid some of the bandages as I dipped into some of my ambrosia stocks. I was glad she wasn't asking me a million questions about why I was here, she probably figured out why based off of my little outburst at the Big House.

"Thanks, Annabeth, you didn't have to."

"Nonsense, you're a good person. I can't just let you bleed either, even if you're not supposed to be here." I hid a wince. "Here, have some breakfast." She passed me a bag of nacho-flavored corn chips from Medusa's place. "Hey, where did you get that from?" She asked suddenly, pointing to the scar Chester had left on my arm so long ago.

"That? Oh, I don't remember. I was really young when I got it." I lied, awkwardly starting on my chips. She sat there for a moment, thinking as she packed up the healing supplies I had gathered. "And Allison? Um, if you ever need to talk or something, I'm here. We are the only two girls on the quest now too, we need to stick together." She added, a bit of a concerned look on her face, but I could tell she was being genuine, not just seeking knowledge. I nodded, offering her a small smile. Then we suddenly heard some twigs snapping, someone was approaching the clearing. I slowly reached for my sword but stopped when Grover came out of the underbrush. He wasn't alone though, he was carrying a small., dirty, pink ball of fluff.

"Hey, guys! Look who I found! He's our ticket west, so be nice." Percy looked up from his bag and his eyes bugged out when he saw Grover. The poodle yipped and Grover replied.

"Are you.. talking to that thing?" The poodle growled.

"Percy, satyrs can talk to animals." I informed him. He looked back to see me awake and rushed over.

"Allison, you're awake! What are you doing here? I woke up to find you here with us, are you crazy? You should be back at camp, you need to-" He started rambling after giving me a hug.

"Percy, I'm all right. See?" I held out my hands and feet to show him that they were all there. "Look, I just know I needed to be here with you guys. I might be crazy, but let's face it, we all are. I mean, you guys going on this suicide quest?"

"The one you snuck out to join." Annabeth pointed out.

"Yeah, yeah, well same difference." Annabeth just rolled her eyes at my childish comment.

"I wake up this morning to see you next to me looking half dead, Allison. You need to be back at camp." Percy insisted.

"Look, Percy. I'm here now, aren't I? You can't just get rid of me that easily and I doubt you would want to leave me somewhere. I _am_ going on this quest with you three. You only have Annabeth's knife between the three of you for a weapon anyway. You need help."

"Actually," Percy said, reaching into his pocket and producing a pen. He held it out and uncapped it. It grew into a familiar three-foot-long bronze sword. "Mr. Br-Chiron gave this to me before we left. He said it was a gift from my dad."

I reached out and took the sword, examining it. I hadn't had the chance to the day of the museum trip. Written in Ancient Greek were the words _Anaklusmos,_ Riptide. The name suited the weapon and its owner. It was nicely balanced too.

"We also have Annabeth's invisibility cap, and the pair of flying shoes Luke gave me before we left." Percy informed.

"You do know you can't go into the sky, right?" I wanted to make sure he didn't do anything to get himself killed, especially by going into Zeus's domain.

"Yeah, I gave the shoes to Grover to use. He's the Red Baron. You should have seen him flying around earlier, he was great."

"Okay, just making sure."

"Guys, meet Gladiola. Gladiola, guys." Grover introduced after a few awkward moments of looking at our new buddy. We then turned our gaze onto him. Was he expecting us to say hello to it? Well, it could understand us..

"Hello Gladiola." I greeted. Gladiola wagged his tail a bit, then Annabeth said hello also.

"I'm not saying hello to a pink poodle," Percy protested. "Forget it."

"Percy," Annabeth chastised. "We said hello to the poodle. You say hello to the poodle." Gladiola growled. Percy said hello to the poodle. Grover then went into explaining how he had come across Gladiola and the reward.

"How does Gladiola know about the reward?" Percy asked.

"He read the signs," Grover said as if the answer was obvious. "Duh."

"Oh, of course. Silly me." Percy said and I smiled.

"So we turn in Gladiola," Annabeth explained in her best 'daughter of Athena' voice. "We get the money, and we buy tickets to Los Angeles. Simple."

"Not another bus," Percy said warily.

"No," she agreed. She then pointed downhill, toward some train tracks I had stumbled across last night.

"There's an Amtrak station half a mile that way, and according to Gladiola, the west bound train leaves at noon."

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Feel free to leave a comment to tell me what you think of the story so far or even just this chapter :)


	17. Chapter 17: The Arch

**AN 7/3/15: **Hey there, so this is a bit of a shorter chapter so I will be posting its second half either later today or tomorrow. I felt the need to split up these because A: cliffhanger and we all know how much the Rick Riordan series loves to have one and B: It felt a bit more natural. Will have a question for you guys at the bottom. Enjoy!

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For the next two days we spent our time on the Amtrak train, heading west through hills and fields. We weren't attacked at all, but everyone was on edge. I spent most of my time just letting myself heal and rest, taking doses of the nectar and ambrosia I "borrowed" from camp. We really should have saved it for emergencies but they all insisted I get back up to one-hundred percent. Percy was constantly pacing about the train, looking out the windows, etcetera.

I found myself waking up during the night from my dreams. They were consistently becoming more and more about the past. Back then, things like that didn't affect me as much, you couldn't think about it much, you just had to keep pressing onward. Now that I had the time to reflect more the impact of it, it was hitting. It hadn't really bugged me much before camp, but now being around all this stuff again it was dragging up the memories.

Percy and I had to keep a low profile; our faces were splattered across the front of several East Coast newspapers. Percy was wanted for the disappearance of his mother and adopted sister, and the bus incident. I was supposedly a missing child. I don't know why they spun it like that, but there wasn't much we could do about it without turning ourselves in. We soon found out why Percy had been singled out as the wanted one: Gabe. Percy had gotten a hold of a newspaper article saying there was a reward for his capture posted by him. That man was worthless.

Once, while Percy and I were playing "I spy", we spotted a lion the size of a Hummer whose fur glinted in the evening light. The Nemean lion. I don't think it took notice to us luckily, otherwise that would have been bad. We were traveling so fast in an enclosed train heading in the opposite direction, so that may have helped. The money we got from turning in Gladiola got us as far as Denver. We couldn't get anything beside plain old seats sadly with that though.

When I was sleeping at one point I woke to Percy and Annabeth talking about the dreams he had been having. That voice in Tartarus was trying to use Percy too I found out. I started to grow progressively more annoyed at that thing for messing with him too. That was not aided by Annabeth basically calling my father a stickler in that came conversation too.

"I guess.. if he meant, 'Help me rise from the Underworld.' If he wants was with the Olympians. But why ask you to bring him the master bolt if he already has it?" Then it got quiet. I still had my eyes closed, pretending to be sleeping. Her question brought me to remembering what the trio had told me about the Furies, who only served my father, asking where _'it'_ was.

"Percy, you can't barter with Hades. You know that, right? He's deceitful, heartless, and greedy." _Wow, tell me how you really feel._ I clenched my fist slightly but slowly released it as to not be noticed. Why must everyone think so low of my father? Yeah, he was kind of the odd man out, but he was made to be that by the other gods. "I don't care if his Kindly Ones weren't as aggressive this time-"

"This time?" Percy asked what I had wanted to know myself. "You mean you're run into them before?" I peaked an eye open to see Annabeth fingering her first camp bead, the one with a large pine tree.

"Let's just say I've got no love for the Lord of the Dead." _Why don't they just make a club for that then? Seems like enough people hate him._ "You can't be tempted to make a deal for your mom."

"What would you do if it was your dad?"

"That's easy, I'd leave him to rot."

"You're not serious?" Percy asked in disbelief. Annabeth explained her relationship with her father, bringing up how she was born. Percy tried to comfort her by telling her about Gabe, but the mention of what Sally put up with for our sake just made me sad. She was always thinking of others, not herself - kind of like Percy. I fell back to sleep before I could listen to the rest of their conversation, the warmth of the blanket coaxing me.

Sooner than expected I was shaken awake by Percy. Grover and Annabeth were mid debate about what to do during the three hour layover. Annabeth was persistent about going to visit the Gateway Arch. We couldn't very well leave her to go alone so we all got up and followed her. I had to stumble out of my blanket and rush to catch up.

The Arch was about a mile away from where our train was stopped. It was later in the day so the lines weren't as long as they could have been, otherwise we might not make it back in time to the train. Annabeth led us into the underground museum, looking at covered wagons and other stuff from the 1800's. Annabeth kept rattling off facts about the Arch and its construction. Percy and Grover were content with just sharing the bag of jellybeans Grover had acquired, following dutifully. I would steal a few beans away every now and then to keep myself occupied. My fingers were tapping against my leg. I had a bad feeling about this, despite the underground being more welcoming.

Nothing had gone wrong in days, something was bound to happen. I realized, like the idiot I was, I forgot my sword back at our seats in the train, vaguely remembering something in my sleepy brain about not wanting to panic mortals at a national monument as had I untangled myself. If anything "godly" happened I would have to use my old weapons. I kept an eye on the other people around us in line, eyeing them and observing to pick out anything that might be a tip-off.

"You smell anything?" I caught Percy murmur to Grover. Grover took his nose out of the jellybeans just long enough sniff around a bit.

"Underground," he said distastefully. "Underground air always smells like monsters. Probably doesn't mean anything." That feeling of foreboding just increased, my foot tapping along with my fingers. I was almost hoping just for a straight up fight right now instead of having to sit on it and wait to be ambushed.

"Guys," Percy started. "You know about the gods' symbols of power?" Annabeth, who had been in the middle of reading some type of plaque looked over to us.

"Yeah?"

"Well, Hade-" Grover cleared his throat. "We're in a public place.. You mean, our friend downstairs?"

"Um, right, our friend _way_ downstairs. Doesn't he have a hat like Annabeth's?" I nearly choked on a jellybean. Did he just compare the _Helm of Darkness_ to Annabeth's baseball cap?

"You mean the Helm of Darkness," Annabeth said after giving me a weird look. "Yeah, that's his symbol of power. I saw it next to his seat during the winter solstice council meeting."

"He was there?" Percy asked.

Annabeth nodded. "The darkest day of the year-the only time he's allowed to visit Olympus. But the helm is a lot more powerful than my invisibility hat, if what I've heard is true.."

"It allows him to become darkness," Grover confirmed. "He can melt into the shadows or pass through walls. He can't be touched, seen, or heard. And he can radiate fear so intense it can drive you insane or stop your heart. Why do you think all rational creatures fear the dark?" I smirked a bit, it was wise for things to fear the dark. Hades controlled that darkness, and that also made his kids have some wicked powers too, if I do say so myself.

"But then.. how do we know he's not here right now, watching us?" We exchanged looks. I wouldn't be able to tell if he was here until it was too late, he was a lot more powerful with the shadows than I.

"We don't."

"Thanks, that makes me feel a lot better," Percy grumbled. "Hey! Allison, stop stealing all the blue ones! Mine!" He looked at me, my hand in the bag and tried to swat it away. _Typical Percy, just like a little kid at times._ I had to smile, waving a couple blue jellybeans in his face then popping them into my mouth, sticking out my tongue after I swallowed for the added bonus.

We all piled into the little elevator car that would take us to the top of the Arch. I could tell Percy was getting antsy in this confined space, I was too frankly. Especially going up into my Uncle's domain with another kid of the Big Three that wasn't his own kid, there was a lot of room to be shot down. There was also this big lady and her dog who stuffed herself into the car with us. The dog looked like a Chihuahua with a rhinestone collar. Red flags went up in my head. Dogs weren't allowed in this place unless they were service dogs, and this dog didn't have the identification of one. The doors closed and we started moving up.

"No parents?" She asked us. She had beady eyes, pointed coffee-stained teeth and wore all denim, her dress bulging so much it made her look like she was about to burst.

"They're below," Annabeth lied easily. "Scared of heights."

"Oh, the poor darlings." Her dog growled. "Now, now, Sonny. Behave." The dog had the same beady eyes as its owner, they glinted with intelligence and viciousness.

"Sonny, is that his name?" Percy asked wearily.

"No."

"Um, ma'am? Is that dog a service dog?" I asked.

She just smiled, as if that cleared everything up. I found myself holding my wrist over my bracelets and watching her and the dog.

At the top of the Arch was the observation deck. There were rows of tiny windows that looked out over the city on one side, the river on the other. The view was pretty good, but I didn't like being so high up in a can like space like this with that lady and her dog without a child of Zeus with me. I would much rather be back below in the museum.

Annabeth was going on and on about the Arch, how she would have made it different and so on. She could have easily stayed up there for hours but the park ranger announced that the observation deck would be closing in a few minutes. Percy and I both steered Grover and Annabeth to the exit and loaded them into the elevator. We were about to board ourselves but there were some tourists already inside. No room for us.

"Next car, please." The park ranger said, going to close the elevator.

"We'll get out," Annabeth said. "We'll wait with you." I was about to agree but Percy insisted that it would be fine. I looked back nervously to see that the lady and her pet were still on the deck. She had a grin on her face that made my skin crawl and was staring straight at us. Once the cart went down all who were left up here was us, a family with a little boy, the park ranger, and creepy lady. I saw a forked tongue flick between her teeth. I grabbed Percy and pulled him further away from the pair.

The Chihuahua started barking at us, jumping down from creepy lady's arms.

"Percy, get your pen out." I whispered. He was frozen though so I shoved his arm a bit. "Get your pen out, now!" I hissed.

"Now, now, Sonny," the lady was saying. "Does this look like a good time? We have all these nice people here."

"Doggie!" The little boy cheered. "Look, a doggie!" His parents pulled him back further from the dog thankfully. The dog bared his teeth at us, foam dripping from its black lips. I made sure I had my hands poised to activate my weapons at a moment's notice.

"Well, son," she sighed. "If you insist." I saw Percy reach for his pen out of the corner of my eye. I clutched my necklace, madly trying to come up with a plan of action. I heard a clicking of locks behind us and I glanced over to see the emergency doors locked. _Styx._

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What do you hope to see from this story? Can be literal or generalized theme things. Thanks :) It helps a lot to get feedback and I want you guys to enjoy it as much as I did while writing.


	18. Chapter 18: Creepy Lady & the Show Mutt

**AN 7/4/15:** Hey so I think I forgot to mention this when I posted it but I have a link to the awesome person whose artwork Allison's necklace is based off of on my profile. That dude has some other cool necklaces and stuff too. Anyway, I wanted to mention that I have been working on the second installment of this series, but that is slow going. To help get more work done when I am stumped on the second I have been working a bit on the third. I also started a kind of spin-off, but I'm not sure of that will make an appearance for a long time, as in not until after the base series is done (aka after the fifth book is out generally speaking). Thanks for those who already made a comment in response to my question, it helps a ton to get feedback from the awesome people who are actually the ones reading this story. I believe that is all for now, enjoy your weekend!

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"Um, did you just call that dog your son?" Percy asked nervously, clutching his pen.

"_Chimera, _dear." She corrected. _Well.. Shiz. _"Not a Chihuahua. It's an easy mistake to make."

"Not really.." I muttered.

Creepy lady rolled up her sleeves to reveal scaly, green skin. When she smiled her teeth were now full out fangs. Her pupils now looked sideways, like a reptile.

The Chihuahua/Chimera barked louder and with each bark it grew. At first it became the size of maybe a Great Dane, then a lion. The bark had turned into a roar at this point. The poor little boy screamed and his parents pulled him to the locked exit, desperately trying to open up the doors. The park ranger stood by them, paralyzed, staring at the beast.

The Chimera's back was now rubbing against the roof of the Arch. Its lion head had a blood-caked mane and it sported the body of a giant, mangy goat. A ten-foot-long diamondback was whipping around as its tail. The glint of its rhinestone collar, still on it, caught my attention. It was almost like it was trying to be some type of show dog, _as if._ The plate on the collar was now easily visible:

_Chimera_

_Rabid, Fire-Breathing, Poisonous_

_If found, please contact Tartarus- EXT. 954_

"Hey, Perce, have a phone on you? I think we found their lost mutt." Percy looked at me, as if my comment was totally uncalled for. "Hey, honest question." He just shook his head.

"Fine. You get those people out of here, I'll cover you. Once they're out we can get out ourselves." I whispered as to not alert Creepy Lady and Mutt.

"Are you crazy? You don't even have a weapon with you, no. You protect, I'll cover."

I was about to protest but Creepy Lady chose to speak after she was done watching the mortals panic. "Be honored, Lord Zeus rarely allows me to test heroes with one of my brood. For I am the Mother of Monsters, the terrible Echidna!"

"Just our luck." I said under my breath. Then I heard Percy speak.

"Isn't that a kind of anteater?" I resisted the urge to hit my head on the wall. As it was, Echidna howled - her reptilian face turning brown and green, eyes narrowing with rage. _I wonder if it can go purple?_ It would have been funny to see, had she not been wanting to break our necks. "I hate it when people say that! I hate Australia! Naming that ridiculous animal after me. For that, Percy Jackson, my son shall destroy you!"

The Chimera charged, its lion teeth gnashing and snake tail flailing. Percy and I split apart, leaping aside to avoid the bite. I heard a distinct snap of something as the Chimera face-planted into the wall. When it pulled back I saw a crumpled security camera fall to the ground. Percy uncapped his sword and took a swing but missed. I ended up next to the family and park ranger, all of which were now screaming, trying to pry open the emergency doors. I couldn't let them get hurt, let alone the little boy. I activated sword, relishing in holding it after so long.

"Move!" I shouted at them, getting them out of the way. I heard the sounds of battle back where Percy and the Chimera were but I had my task. I slashed at the door, cutting off the handle and kicked out its opposite, causing the door to swing open.

"GO!" I yelled, scooping up the little boy and thrusting him into his father's arms. I turned back to the fight to see Percy dodge a column of flame, the sound of retreating, panicked steps getting fainter. Percy dove away from the explosion as the carpet burst into flames behind him. I could feel the heat all the way from where I stood. There was now a ragged hole in the side of the Arch, the melting framework catching fire and metal steaming. _Wonderful._

Percy took another slash at the Chimera, his blade glancing off the collar.

"Watch the tail!" I yelled, but it was too late, he wasn't fast enough to jump away from the snake head as he regained his balance. The serpent head bit into his calf and he stumbled. I cursed and activated my necklace. He had managed to fend off the monster for this long, which was very impressive, but now we needed to end it.

I yelled, "Hey! Show mutt, over here!" I admit, that may not have been my best insult, but it got the Chimera's attention nonetheless. It turned to face me and unleashed a blast of fire. I rolled out of the way and threw my dagger at the beast. The knife buried itself into its side with a satisfying roar from the Chimera. It lunged at me, loathing in its eyes. I ducked and slashed upward with my sword, right at its face. I cut a gash in the monster's muzzle and looked back to see where Percy was. He was weaponless at the edge of the hole leading into the void. He looked to be in really bad pain, clutching his chest and leg limp under him, face chalk-white. _The venom, gods damn it, he needs water!_

"They don't make heroes like they used to, eh, son?" Echidna laughed, looking at Percy.

"Shut up already lady!" I yelled. Echidna growled at me as the Chimera started stalking me, strategically keeping itself in the perfect position to just as easily attack Percy. I tried to edge closer to him but it seemed like it was in no hurry to finish him off now that it thought he was beaten. It was just keeping me away to toy with us.

"Percy, jump in the water!" I yelled over to him. That was the only way he could live with that venom still in his system.

"You should have died long ago, young one!" Echidna snarled at me, eyeing the sword in my hand. "You just can't seem to stay away now can you?"

"Percy, just do it already! I'll be fine, you've done enough. Leave the rest to me. Heal yourself now or you _will_ die and I swear to all the gods if you do I will resurrect you just to kill you again for being an idiot. Jump!"

Echidna laughed, this time a harsher, more taunting laugh. "She is right, if you are the son of Poseidon," she hissed. "You would not fear the water. Do as she says and jump, Percy Jackson. Show me that the water will not harm you. Jump and retrieve your sword, prove your bloodline. Leave the girl, she was meant to die long ago anyway." Percy looked like he was about to pass out. He had done enough already, fighting the Chimera long enough to let me get those people out of here, even landing some hits on it. That was tremendous for a fight like this.

"You have no faith," Echidna told him as I dodged a column of flame when I got too close to him for the Chimera's liking. "You do not trust the gods. I cannot blame you, little coward. Your friend here has already learned that lesson the hard way. Better you die now, the gods are faithless. The venom is in your heart." Percy look a unsteady step back, toward the gaping hole in the monument. The Chimera turned, getting ready to launch another column of flame at him, its tail keeping me at bay.

"Die, faithless one." Echidna rasped.

"Gods damn it Percy! Just jump or I will shove you off!" I shouted over the roar of the flames sent Percy's way. I saw him mutter something, sending me one last sorrowful glance. Then he jumped over the edge of the monument, clothes on fire, venom coursing through his veins, plummeting hundreds of feet to the river.

Echidna let out a vicious laugh, then turned to me.

"You see? Even the one who was raised as a brother to you abandons you. You have nothing left. Why don't you just die peacefully now and return to your old family? Yes, I know who you are. The gods may be blind to it but I see the truth. Doesn't it just _burn_ knowing that you don't belong? The gods don't care about you, not even your own father. He sent the Fury after you. You are just an echo of someone who should have died long ago. You have no reason to be here." She hissed.

There was truth in her words too, everything that had mattered to me was long gone. Only Chiron and Percy were there for me now. Sally: the only other person in this life that gave a damn about what happened to me, was gone. I then grew angry. It did always feel maddeningly wrong to be here, but I couldn't let her go and kill more people, to go after the quest group.

I pulled the remaining shadows in on me, curling them around myself like a cool mist. I recalled my dagger with a flick of my wrist from the Chimera, eliciting a noise of pain from the Chimera, activating it from its necklace form again. I wielded it with my sword, one in each hand. It had been a long time since I fought like this in a monster battle and it felt good.

"You don't know me, Echidna. Like I would 'die peacefully' being eaten by your little pet here and let you two live to hurt more people anyway. You are just giving me all the more reason to live right now. You are supposed to be nonexistent to the world yourself, hag, so don't talk." I ran at the Chimera, jumping aside to let a blast of flames fly past me, not stopping when part of the flames hit my shoulder and I kicked a piece of wreckage, probably the security camera, sending it careening into the Chimera's leg, just above the hoof. I switched hands, my dagger now in my dominant. I threw it at the Chimera's mouth as it opened to launch more flames. It managed to successfully cut into it and lodge down its throat.

"Wonder how that stygian iron must taste like right now." I taunted, smirking. I closed the distance between me and the choking mutt, slicing off its snake tail as it tried to swipe me off my feet or bite me. I dove under the best, just nearly avoiding a spluttered breath of fire, and drive my sword upward into its exposed underbelly, turning to avoid its hoof.

The Chimera let out an ear-splitting cry, the stygian iron helping destroy its life force even faster than normal demigod metals. I was rewarded with a shower of gold monster dust. I picked up my dagger and turned to Echidna. She had a beyond angry look on her ugly face.

"You.." She seethed. "You will pay for that. Just you wait, Cooper. Watch your back. You are lucky I am only permitted to test you heroes with my son, otherwise you would be long gone."

"Then go already, nobody wants you here." She hissed, sending one last look of pure and utter loathing and disappeared. I sighed in relief and sank to the floor, catching my breath, but I couldn't stay long. The flames were inching their way closer. I winced as I moved my shoulder, I didn't fancy getting roasted in this metal can. I looked at the pile of monster dust, glad that there was one less problem in my life at the moment.

I began to stand up when something caught my eye. On the floor among the remains of the Chimera were two teeth. They were canine teeth from the Chimera's lion head. I picked them up and pocketed them. I looked around at the wreckage of the fight, flames and melting metal everywhere. There was a charred smell to the air and the acrid smoke was filling the tin can that used to be the observation deck.

I gently rubbed where my cuts were bandaged. They must have gotten disturbed by all the fighting, as I saw a slight patch of red beginning to form on my shoulder, right by the burn. The fabric of my shirt was smoking a bit too. _Why did it have to be a hellhound that got me? Those take forever to heal._ I put away my weapons and turned to the exit.

It was getting extremely hot in here. I was surprised it had lasted this long. I walked into the stairwell after readjusting the steel knife in my boot, the stairwell being the only remotely dark place safe from the flame's illumination. I took a deep breath and shadow traveled to the bottom of the monument, reappearing in the shadow of a news van. I quickly hurried away from the vehicle, getting lost in the crowd. I couldn't afford it if someone recognized me or got me on film.

The sun was already setting, the flames of the Arch matching the skyline. I started looking around for Percy and the others. By now Percy would be healed and hopefully out of the water, preferable with Annabeth and Grover. Newscasters were rambling about how this was "Probably not a terrorist attack" and so on to the cameras. They also were including some kind of eyewitness reports of someone falling from the Arch._ Always know how to make an impression, don't you Percy?_ Now it was just a matter of finding the others before the train left the station. I searched for a few minutes before I heard footsteps running up behind me. I turned, clutching my bracelet and was tackled by a hug.

"Ally! You're okay! I shouldn't have left you up there." Percy spilled out. I gently removed his arm from where my burn was and I saw Annabeth and Grover running up behind him. Percy still smelled like he had spent too much time by a mechanical fire, but he was okay.

"Yeah, I'm fine, just a little burn. Are you all healed?" He nodded, quickly taking a step back and proceeding to check me over for damage. He poked at the bandage visible on my arm near the burn that was now faintly red.

"They opened up again, didn't they?" Annabeth asked, pulling out some ambrosia from her backpack and handing it to me. I took it gratefully, the warm taste of my mother's caramel filling my mouth. "Will help the burn too."

"Hey, where did you get those wicked weapons you used come from?" Percy asked me once he was sure I didn't have any other damage. Grover and Annabeth looked up at the question. _Damn it, Percy, you just had to bring that up in front of them._

"Um, what?"

"You know, I saw you using that awesome sword and knife. I thought you left your sword back at the train."

"I don't know what you're talking about, Percy." I sent him a look that said _later._ He luckily got the hint and shushed up.

"Come on, we need to get back to the train." I insisted, finishing off the ambrosia. I started dragging them back to the train station.

On our way we passed a particularly enthusiastic newscaster with overdone makeup. "That's right, Dan. Channel Twelve has just learned that the boy who might have caused this explosion fits the description of a young man wanted by authorities for a serious New Jersey bus accident three days ago. The boy is believed to be traveling west. For our viewers at home, here is a photo of the boy; Percy Jackson."

"And we're walking from makeup lady, briskly walking." I muttered as we picked up the pace, quickly making our way as far from the Arch as possible.

"First things first," Percy told us. "We've got to ditch town."


	19. Chapter 19: Back to Colorado

**AN 7/11/15:** Hey there, sorry this is a day late, I wasn't able to get onto the site earlier (wasn't working for some reason) and it has been a crazy week. I just wanted to say thanks to the awesome people who have been reviewing, it really makes this all even more worthwhile. I am glad you are finding this story interesting and I have been working on the next books and testi writing a spin-off. I managed to talk to my one friend (who I started it with) and he has gotten a bit more back into writing so another person to bounce ideas off of will be really cool. Anyway, thanks a ton for the reviews and I hope you enjoy this chapter and some of the Allison's backstory bits.

* * *

We somehow managed to make it back to the Amtrak station without being spotted, boarding just in time. The train took off into the night as darkness fell, police lights still pulsing against the St. Louis skyline in our wake. I was actually quite surprised that we had managed to get to the train, let alone the train leaving the city at all. I would think that after something like that they would have all travel stopped.

After Percy finished telling us about his conversation in the Mississippi, Annabeth switched topics.

"So what's this about these 'wicked' weapons Percy mentioned?" She asked. I sighed slightly. I knew I couldn't avoid the question any longer.

"They are something Chiron gave me. He said they used to belong to a former student of his that I reminded him of." It was only a partial lie, as technically they did belong to an old student, it was just that I was that student.

"The bracelet and necklace you shoved at Chiron on the porch?" She guessed and I nodded.

"What was that about on the porch anyway, you said something like 'thing will never change, will they?'"

I studied her. She was fully focused on me, probably reading my body language to tell any lies. I became very mindful of myself and as I talked I released the tension in my shoulder. "You just hear all these stories of the gods and quests their children have to go on, and it makes you wonder if everything is just stuck in an endless cycle."

"Can we see them?" Grover asked, clearly curious about the weapons that killed the Chimera.

"It probably isn't the best idea to bring them out in public unless I really need them. We don't need any more attention brought to us." I was already using some of the Mist to make my sword look like a water bottle in a little bag on my belt to try not to make it obvious, but the Mist can be faulty.

"True, but why do you carry that sword if you already have those weapons?" Annabeth gestured to the regular sword I was hiding under the blanket next to me. _Dang daughter of Athena._

I made myself look nonchalant, "Eh, they just feel a bit awkward, but I am keeping them because Chiron seemed like he wanted me to have them. I prefer using the sword I brought." I gave a noncommittal shrug. "Anyway, I'm pretty tired. I'm going to go to sleep. Night guys." I covered myself with a blanket to block myself from prying eyes but I could still feel Annabeth's intelligent gaze. Percy and Grover had already switched conversations to talks of dinner.

Soon my breathing evened out and I fell asleep. I felt myself being pulled into a dream and frankly I was getting really tired of these. Couldn't I just get one peaceful sleep? It felt like I couldn't even take a nap now-a-days without being plagued with them, or old memories.

I was standing in the valley of my last fight, the water rushing over rocks and the sounds of battle in the background. The memory played out until I heard the voice, the one from the pit. My dream focused in on Chester, who was battling a hellhound. The voice was goading him, telling him it was time for action, as if it had done similar before. Whatever plan they had must be set in motion.

I got a sick feeling as Chester finished off the hellhound and moved to where Nick and I were fighting. That voice was talking to Chester again, riling him up, almost like when an animal gets into a frenzy, but more controlled and calculating. I remembered how in my first dream the voice had basically said it was the reason I was killed, and now I saw it happening.

The voice had helped push Chester over the edge, and given the memories of the looks he would give me long before that final act I would bet it had been talking to him then too. It had been leading him into becoming paranoid and wanting to kill the cause, or as close as he could get. I swore to myself then that I would make that voice pay. Clearly it had some grand plan, and now it wanted to try to recruit me, given the last time it spoke to me. Something was in the works and I needed to know what.

My memory of the battle stopped at that last scene. I tried to make the memory stop before it could play out fully, but I couldn't. I was forced to see Nick's grief stricken face once again. My dream then turned into glimpses of stuff that had recently happened. I saw Echidna and the Furies attacking a bus, even Chiron's words from after I woke up. Then I saw something that hadn't happened yet. I was in my father's throne room, fighting with him, an army of the undead surrounding the walls. I could only see my father and I but I got the feeling there were others present.

I saw an older, sadder Nick. His face, once almost always cheery, was one of someone who had seen too much - the one I see in the mirror and try to hide. I saw flashes of two kids I didn't know playing in a hotel, a familiar presence nearby. One was a girl with dark hair and freckles, the other a boy who looked to be her brother, if I had to guess. There was an explosion and I saw a flash of the boy's older self. He was about ten in the flash, clutching some sort of dark figurine. Then the dream faded and I felt myself waking up. It was the next afternoon already. Percy, Annabeth, and Grover were just starting to stir.

It was June 14th already, seven days before the solstice. Our train rolled up into Denver as I finished eating what Annabeth saved for me from the dining car the previous night. Looking at them and down at myself, I realized how we must look like a pretty scruffy group of kids. Nobody had showered since Camp and after a few monster attacks, it was really a necessity.

"Let's try to contact Chiron," Annabeth suggested.

"We can't use phones though, right?"

"I'm not talking about phones."

We wandered around downtown for about half an hour, looking for a place to make the I-M. The air was hot and dry, very unlike the humidity in St. Louis. Everywhere we turned, the Rocky Mountains were there, at least off west. I found myself looking around in fascination as we walked; the city had changed so much. I sighed, remembering the old days of living in Colorado before I knew I was a half-blood. The mountains had been an everyday view for me and Nick. It was a nice change from the city and I liked to be able to see the familiar landscape again. I had grown up here after all. I was more a rural living kind of girl, personally. Denver was so much more built up though, more big businesses being at the top of that growth.

We finally came across an empty do-it-yourself carwash. We veered toward the stall farthest from the street and kept our eyes peeled for any patrol cars. Four roughed up kids hanging around a car wash without a car, that was a big red-flag for any self-respecting law enforcement officer right there.

"What are we doing, exactly? How are we going to contact Chiron from here?" Percy asked as Grover picked up the spray gun.

"It's sev-Oh, thanks, Allison." I handed him seventy-five cents, putting the rest of my change back into my pocket, hand brushing against the Chimera teeth.

"Excellent," he said. "We could use a spray bottle, of course. But the connection isn't as good, and my arm gets tired of pumping the bottle." _Of if you are a child of a water deity with control over water you can, with enough practice, make your own mist._

"What are you talking about?" Percy asked. I couldn't wait to see his reaction to the I-M. I remember the first time I ever saw one and resisted any and all bouncing up and down like a little kid.

Grover inserted the quarters into the machine and set to knob to _Fine Mist._ "I-Ming."

"Instant messaging?"

"Iris-messaging," Annabeth corrected. "The rainbow goddess, Iris, carries messages for the gods. If you know how to ask, and she isn't too busy she'll do the same for us."

"You summon the goddess with a spray gun?" I smiled, as Annabeth rolled her eyes. Of course Percy would be the one to say something like that about any of the gods. Someday he would get himself in big trouble with that mouth if he wasn't careful. I could picture it now:

_Zeus frowning in the Olympian council room, knuckles white as he gripped his throne, grinding his teeth. "I'm going to ask you to be respectful."_

_ Percy from the center of the room, a stoic look on his face with a hint of amusement in his eyes, "I will politely decline."_

Back to the moment I heard the water hiss out of the nozzle and Grover pointed it to make a thick white mist. "Unless you have an easier way to make a rainbow." After a moment a rainbow formed in the mist, the last afternoon light filtering through the water droplets.

Annabeth held out her palm to Percy, "Drachma, please." Percy handed one over and Annabeth raised the coin over her head. "O goddess, accept our offering." She threw in the coin, it disappearing in a golden shimmer. "Half-Blood Hill." She requested.

It took a moment for the message to go through, but then the image of camp's hill appeared in the mist. The strawberry fields and the Sound in the distance. We were in the perspective as if we were someone on the porch of the Big House. Standing with his back to the railing was Luke. He had his bronze sword grasped in his hand and seemed to be staring intently at something down in the direction of the cabins. I moved myself out of the view of the I-M; I didn't want there to be any question about my presence with the limited time we had for the I-M.

"Luke!" Percy called. Luke turned, eyes wide. He looked just three feet away, but that was just the magic of the I-M.

"Percy!" Luke's face broke out into a grin. "Is that Annabeth too? Thank the gods! Are you okay?"

"We're.. uh.. fine," Annabeth stammered, very unlike a child of Athena. She was quickly straightening her dirty T-shirt while simultaneously trying to swipe loose hair out of her face. "We thought Chiron, I mean-"

"He's down at the cabins." Luke's smile faded. "We're having some issues with the campers. Listen, is everything cool with you guys? Is Grover alright?"

Just then, a big black car pulled up into the closest stall, its stereo blasting out trashy music that would have made my grandmother have a heart attack, the vibrations shaking the pavement.

"Chiron had to-what's that noise?"

"I'll take care of it." Annabeth yelled back, looking very relieved to be saved from being within view. "Grover, come on!"

"What? But-"

"Give the nozzle over and come here." She ordered. I took the nozzle from him and made a little shooing motion with my hand. I heard Grover mutter something about girls being harder to understand than the Oracle and I gave him a proud grin.

"Chiron had to break up a fight," Luke shouted over the music. "Things are pretty tense here, Percy. Word leaked out about the Zeus Poseidon standoff. We're still not sure how, probably the same scumbag who summoned the hellhound. Now the campers are taking sides. It's shaping up like the Trojan War all over again. Aphrodite, Ares, Apollo all backing Poseidon, more or less. Athena is backing Zeus."

If this quest failed we would be in deep dodo. I heard Annabeth and the driver arguing with each other. The music's volume dropped drastically.

"So what's your status?" Luke asked. "Chiron will be sorry he missed you, your friend has been wanting to talk to you too." I don't think Percy picked up on that last part, but I sure did. Luke was lying about me still being at camp, he wasn't telling Percy about me going missing in the camp's eyes. Before I could stop him without making my presence with Percy known, Percy went on to tell Luke basically everything, including his dreams. I couldn't say anything without being noticed by Luke, and I wasn't so keen after his earlier comment for him to know where I was. I was growing even more weary of Luke, more than I was of the rest of the campers. Yeah, Luke had been at camp a while and was a good fighter, but I only fully trusted Chiron, Percy, and Sally here. His comment had just sprung up another warning flag on him.

_Where are you, Nick? I need an ally who has experience. I don't even know what happened.._

"I wish I could be there," Luke was saying. "We can't help much from here, I'm afraid, but listen.. it had to be Hades who took the master bolt. He was there at Olympus during the solstice. I was chaperoning a field trip and we saw him." I scowled, he was really being insistent on pegging my father as the culprit. Why bring it up now when we already have the objective to the quest, was my question. I readjusted my sword in its sheathe at my waist.

"But Chiron said the gods can't take each other's magic items directly."

"That's true," Luke said, a troubled look on his face. "Still.. Hades has the Helm of Darkness. How could anybody else sneak into the room and steal the master bolt? You'd have to be invisible." _Exactly, and I knew sure as heck my father wouldn't lend his helm for somebody to use to get the bolt, if he wanted it in the first place._ I looked at him through the side of the Iris Message, wondering if he was really suggesting that Annabeth had something to do with the theft intentionally. I could never picture her doing something like that, she was a nice girl, loyal to camp. A bit picky at times but she was good. _Unless someone else got a hold of an item like that. _My original hesitations about Luke were starting to grow though.. he just seemed.. off. Call me paranoid but there was something there.

There was a silence before Luke seemed to realize his implications.

"Oh, hey," he protested. "I didn't mean Annabeth. She and I have known each other forever. She would never.. I mean, she's like a little sister to me." In the next stall over, the music stopped dead. A man screamed in terror, a fairly shrill girly voice actually for a man, car doors slammed, and the car fled from the car wash.

"You'd better go see what that was," Luke continued. "Listen, are you wearing the flying shoes? I'll feel a lot better if they've done you some good."

"Oh.. uh, yeah!" Percy was trying not to sound guilty, but for somebody who had known him since he was a toddler, it was fairly easy to tell, even if I didn't know Grover had the shoes. "Yeah, they've come in handy."

"Really?" Luke grinned. "They fit and everything?" _What's so special about those shoes?_ _Why would Luke give a kid he basically just met a pair of his father's shoes?_ I guess I was just overly cautious about anything involving Percy and was just being over skeptical about everything. Some things in this quest just didn't line up though. I hadn't had the best experiences in the past with kids Luke's age and with similar looks, maybe I was just automatically on edge. It was just that something about him was just reminding me of Chester. The water shut off and the mist started evaporating.

"Well, take care of yourself out there in Denver," Luke called out, his voice fading. "and tell Grover it'll be different this time! Nobody will get turned into a pine tree if he just-" But the mist was gone, his image faded. Annabeth and Grover came around the corner, laughing, but sobered up once they saw our faces.

"What happened guys? What did Luke say?"

"Nothing much," Percy lied, sending me a glance to tell me not to say anything. "Come on, let's find dinner."

* * *

Soon I found myself sitting at a booth in a gleaming chrome diner. All around our table there were happy families eating classic diner food, drinking shakes and doing everything like normal people did. A waitress finally came over after observing us when she came out of the swinging kitchen doors, eyebrow raised. "Well?"

"We, um, want to order dinner." Percy said nervously.

"You kids have the money to pay for it?" I started rifling through my bag, hoping I had enough money left to get us all food. I saw Grover's lip quivering and Annabeth looked like she was about to pass out. Then, a rumble shook the building as a motorcycle the size of a baby elephant rolled into the lot.

All conversation abruptly stopped. The bike's headlights beamed red, gas tank painted with flames and full shotgun holster strapped to its side. I put my hand on the hilt of my sword, ready to draw if needed. The guy on the bike was really built and dressed in cliché muscle-man gear, a black leather duster to top off the look. He actually reminded me a bit of Terminator. There was a huge hunting knife strapped to his thigh, his eyes blocked with red wraparound shades, his face cruel and scarred even from a distance.

I gulped in recognition, scrunching down in my seat to hide behind Annabeth and the wall. As he walked into the diner, a hot, dry wind swept through the doors. Every mortal in the place stood up in a trance, but he just waved them back down. _Talk about an entry, definitely Zeus's son._ Our waitress blinked, as if she was back at the moment she arrived and asked us again:

"You kids have money to pay for it?"

"It's on me." The man said. He slid down into our booth, right next to Annabeth. I got pressed up against the wall as Annabeth frantically scooted over. He looked up at the waitress, who was gaping at him and said, "Are you still here?"

He pointed at her and forcibly made her start walking back to the kitchen. The man, or should I say god, looked at all of us. His eyes lingered on me for a moment, as if trying to place a memory, then landed on Percy. I saw Percy's muscles go tense in his arms, like he was clenching his fists.

Ares gave a wide grin. "So you're old Seaweed's kid, huh?" It looked as if Gabe was talking, just by looking at Percy. I kicked his foot from under the table to warn him not to say anything that might get us killed but, of course, he ignored me.

"What's it to you?"

Annabeth's eyes flashed in warning. "Percy, this is-" Ares raised his hand.

"S'okay," he said. "I don't mind a little attitude. Long as you remember who's boss. You know who I am, little cousin?"

After a moment Percy responded, "You're Clarisse's dad, Ares, god of War."

Ares grinned and took off his shades, empty sockets glowing like miniature nuclear explosions.

"That's right, punk. I heard you broke Clarisse's spear."

"She was asking for it." At this point I was willing to gag Percy, stuff him in a sack, and drag him out of here by force if that's what it took for us to not be killed by this volatile god.

"Probably. That's cool. I don't fight my kids' fights, you know? What I'm here for-I heard you were in town. I got a little proposition for you."

The waitress came back with loaded trays of food. I eyed the milkshakes eagerly. Ares handed her a few gold drachmas as payment. The poor waitress nervously looked at the coins until Ares pulled out his hunting knife, casually cleaning his fingernails. "Problem, sweetheart?" The waitress swallowed and quickly left.

"You can't do that," Percy protested. "You can't just threaten people with a knife."

Ares laughed. "Are you kidding me? I love this country. Best place since Sparta. Don't you carry a weapon around, punk? Your friend does, she knows what's up." He said with a slight nod in my direction as I awkwardly clutched my sword hilt. "Dangerous world out there, you should know." I fought the surprise from registering visually on my features. _He might just be talking about the Chimera,_ I reassured myself. Ares turned back to Percy. "Which brings me to my proposition. I need you to do me a favor." _Ooh boy, we're in for it now.._

"What favor could I do for a god?"

"Something a god doesn't have time to do himself. Nothing much. I left my shield at an abandoned water park here in town. I was going on a little... date with my girlfriend. We were interrupted. I left my shield behind. I want you to fetch it for me." Ares bringing a shield along on a date didn't really surprise me.

"Why don't you just go back and get it yourself?" _Man, his aura is _really_ not good for Percy. I need to get him out of here before he gets us killed. _As it was, the fire in Ares's eyes glowed a little brighter.

"Why don't I turn you into a prairie dog and run you over with my Harley? Because I don't feel like it. A god is giving you a chance to prove yourself, Percy Jackson. Will you prove a coward?" He leaned in. "Or maybe you only fight when there's someone else to take the blows for you and a river to dive into, so your daddy can protect you." Percy's expression looked like one that said he so badly wanted to slug Ares right now, but was luckily refraining from doing so. Ares was just waiting for him to snap.

"We're not interested," he said. "We've already got a quest." Then Ares's fiery eyes showed us stuff I didn't want to see again, images of the more gruesome side of war. I involuntary shivered slightly, my hand tightening around my sword.

"I know all about your quest, punk. When that weapon was first stolen, Zeus sent out his best looking for it: Apollo, Athena, Artemis, and me, naturally."_ So the A-Team._ "If I couldn't sniff out a weapon that powerful.." He licked his lips, as if the idea of a weapon that powerful made him physically hungry. I was progressively liking Ares less and less as this meeting went on, if that was possible.

"Well if I couldn't find it, you got no hope. Nevertheless, I'm trying to give you the benefit of the doubt. Your dad and I go way back. After all, I'm the one who told him my suspicions about old Corpse Breath." I glared at Ares. _Always the butt of Olympian comments._

"You told him Lord Hades stole the bolt?" I almost growled. I knew who was on my official list of figures I hated, top rank at the moment.

"Sure. Framing somebody to start a war. Oldest trick in the book. I recognized it immediately. In a way, you got me to thank for this little quest." I narrowed my eyes at that comment. That theory can go both ways, but I held my tongue in favor of not being turned into a rodent and becoming road kill. I was just happy he didn't seem to make any connection to me and my father, especially with everyone right here. I didn't want to think about what might happen if people found out again..

"Thanks," Percy grumbled.

"Hey, I'm a generous guy. Just do my little job, and I'll help you on your way. I'll arrange a ride west for you and your friends."

"We're find on our own, thanks." I cut in. Offers like these always had a way of turning bad, like genies in old Arabian stories. There is always a twist. That concept of being careful what you wished for carried over pretty well in relation to the gods and their offers.

Ares snorted and proceeded to point out all that had gone wrong in the past number of days. Then he mentioned Sally. I looked to Percy to see his reaction, begging him to not take the bait. He took it.

"My mom?"

Ares grinned widely. "That got your attention. The water park is a mile west on Delancy. You can't miss it. Look for the Tunnel of Love ride."

"What interrupted your date?" Percy asked. "Something scare you off?"

Ares gave that child of Ares kid look that I had grown to recognize over the years. The false look of confidence hidden behind a try at a strong face.

"You're lucky you met me, punk, and not one of the other Olympians. They're not as forgiving of rudeness as I am. I'll meet you back here when you're done. Don't disappoint." After that Ares was gone, Percy's eyes snapping back open.

"Not good," Grover said. "Ares sought you out, Percy. This is not good." Percy looked out the window. I knew that look, he was thinking about what Ares had said about Sally. I saw the anger that was in him previously dissipate.

"It's probably some kind of trick. Forget Ares. Let's just go."

"Um, Percy, no matter how much of a jerk the guy is, we can't just ignore him without bad things happening. But I agree, the old stories are riddled with things like this. Gods offering things and then it going bad for the little guys." I said.

"Allison's right, Percy. I hate Ares as much as anybody, but you don't just ignore the gods unless you want some serious repercussions. He wasn't kidding about turning you into a rodent." Annabeth agreed with a slightly appraising look in my direction. At that idea- now that it wasn't as present a threat- a weird picture of Percy formed in my head of him as a little furry rodent with little ears and a wiggly tail danced through my mind.

"Why does he need us?"

"Maybe it's a problem that requires brains," She theorized. "Ares has strength. That's all he has. Even strength has to bow to wisdom sometimes." Spoken like a true daughter of Athena.

"But this water park.. he acted almost scared. What could make a god of War run away like that?"

Annabeth and Grove shared a look.

"Percy, don't worry. It's a water park, if worst comes to worst, you will be our best fighter there." I reassured.

"Still, I'm afraid we will have to find out."

* * *

**Have an awesome week! Also, oohh the things I have planned for this series, *insert evil laugh here***


	20. Chapter 20: Worst Dream Ever

**AN 7/17/15:** I hope you enjoy this chapter, I felt like I had an evil grin the whole time while writing. It was fun to write. Have a good weekend and comment what you think!

* * *

The sun was sinking behind the Rockies by the time we arrived at the water park. Judging from the sign, it was once called _Waterland,_ but now some of the letters were missing. We soon found our way over the padlocked, barbed wire fence and started working our way through the park. It would have been a lot easier just to shadow travel the few inch distance required to get inside the park past the fence, but instead I had to climb with Percy and Annabeth.

The shadows were growing longer as we walked through the park and I found it somewhat comforting. They would provide nice cover and an emergency exit if the need arose. We passed several attractions, all of which just made the whole place scream 90's teenager.

What put me off was that there was no activity anywhere throughout the park. There were no monsters that I could detect, not even any little critters. I kept trying to feel around for movement in the shadows everything came out fuzzy, no clear signal. I needed to heighten that skill to where it used to be, it was like I was partly blind trying to tell my surroundings. It was frustrating, not having all the abilities I used to have and being forced to redevelop them. Once was hard enough.

After we restocked at a souvenir shop (which by the way I had no clue as to why there was still merchandise around if the place is closed), we continued. I still had this growing feeling like something was going to happen despite the brief reprieve new clothes brought us. It was like the whole park was holding its breath.

Just as Annabeth was explaining the story of Ares and Aphrodite in the golden net, thus leading to them to meet in out-of-the-way places, we found what we were looking for. The sign read:

_THRILL RIDE O'LOVE: This Is Not Your Parents' Tunnel Of Love!_

Grover crept toward the edge of the basin. All around it were little bronze Cupid statues standing guard, and two at the main entrance that were bigger than the others. They stood at attention, wings spread and bows at the ready. At the opposite side of the pool was the entrance tunnel. We all peaked over the edge to see a pink-and-white two-seater boat with a little canopy over the seats that, littered with little painted on hearts. In the left seat was what we came for: Ares's shield.

"This is too easy," Percy stated and I nodded in agreement. "So we just walk down there and get it?"

Suddenly it was like a ping on a radar came up through the shadows. Something was nearby.

Annabeth was busy running her fingers along the base of the nearest Cupid statue. "There is a Greek letter carved here," She said. "Eta. I wonder.." But I wasn't paying attention. I started walking toward what looked like the remains of a merchants stand. It was hard to tell what it was, or even if it was big or small, but something was indeed at the stand. Then as I took another step closer a couple of rats came streaking out from under the stand, squeaking in terror.

_Why would they be running away like that? What are they running from?_ The I saw something on the faded and torn fabric shade covering the stand. _Eta._ Then it hit me, Annabeth had mentioned something about an Eta being on the statue. I ran back to where Grover was.

"Where are Percy and Annabeth?" He pointed down at the basin. I stole a glance at the base of the nearest statue and there was indeed the same letter on it just like with the stand.

"Grover, not good, it has to be a trap. There was another Eta. Too many coincidences to just be coincidences." I rushed out. "Percy, wait!" I called as I ran to the edge of the basin, taking out my sword. It was too late, the sound of a million gears grinding erupted once Percy touched the shield, like the whole area was a machine._ It is exactly that, idiot!_

All around me Cupid statues were little bronze arrows flying from the cupid's bows to across the pool, little cords trailing from the ends of them. It was forming a net of cables and I had to stumble back to avoid being skewered by one.

"Guys!" Grover yelled. I started hacking at the cables but with no luck, the net was too strong. Grover was trying to hold open a spot for the two of them to get out from but the cables kept twisting around his hands.

The heads of the Cupid statues all popped open to reveal video cameras. Spotlights rose up all around the pool, shining their blinding light at us. "Live to Olympus in one minute.. Fifty-nine seconds, fifty-eight," I had just been about to break out my stygian iron blades to see if they had any effect on the cables, but if we were going to be aired to Olympus I couldn't take the risk. My face alone might be recognized, Athena never forgot a face. I pulled the cap I had picked up at the shop we raided tighter over my head, trying to obstruct my face from the cameras.

"Hephaestus! I'm so stupid!" I heard Annabeth scream. This was not the time to think about the rarity of a child of Athena saying they were stupid. "Eta is H. He made this trap to catch his wife with Ares. Now we're going to be broadcast to Olympus and look like absolute fools!" They had almost made it to the rim of the pool when the rows of mirrors along the sides opened to reveal an army of thousands of tiny metallic spiders. _So that's what the rats were running from._ Annabeth screamed, the spiders' little pincer mouths were clacking and they swarmed. "Spiders!" She yelled. "Sp-spp-aaah!"

I found myself cursing rapidly under my breath in Greek, it was an old habit to prevent my mother from understanding what I was saying. _Of course this had to happen. We can't just have one peaceful thing._ Apparently that was too much to ask for. Ares had set us up and now Percy and Annabeth were being assaulted by tiny automatons.

"Grover, we have to do something! These cables won't break!" I yelled over to him, slamming my blade down against the base of the cables yet again, trying to pry up their anchors.

Percy had managed to get Annabeth and himself back to the boat but they were being overwhelmed. Annabeth was completely locked down, frozen in fear and panic. _They just had to be spiders._

"Thirty, twenty-nine," called out the loud speaker.

"We know already!" I yelled back in frustration. Grover was hovering above the pool in his flying sneakers, still trying in vain to untangle the net. I turned my attention to the bronze statues. If I could disable them somehow then we might have a chance. I ran up to the nearest statue, one of the bigger ones at the entrance, and climbed up onto the pedestal it was standing on. I tried to knock out the camera or the bow but once I made the first swing the statue grew hot and the arm holding the bow swung around and hit me off. I landed on the asphalt with a grunt. That hadn't worked out like I had hoped. Leave it to Hephaestus to make the Cupids have a defense mechanism.

"Fifteen, fourteen," I saw Percy's face brighten up as if he had an idea as I scrambled back to my feet.

"Grover! Get into that booth! Find the 'on' switch!"

"But-"

"Do it!" I dashed for the booth as Grover flew over but then I heard something behind me. It was like a clanking of metal hitting metal. As Grover started rapidly switching levers and pressing buttons I turned around to see the statue I had tried to attack climbing off its pedestal.

"Shit.."

"Five, four-" It loaded its bow again, taking aim at me.

"Two, one, zero!" Water exploded from the pipes as the arrow flew. Torrents of water swept up the metal spiders and flooded the pool as I dove to the side to avoid being hit with the arrow.

"That is one angry looking metal baby face." I muttered to myself, then I yelled to Grover. "Grover! We have company! You help Percy and Annabeth, I'll take baby-face!" Grover turned to see what I was talking about and I caught his face turn pale, but he nodded. I dodged another arrow as I saw the boat swirling around the basin, faster and faster in a whirlpool. The frilly canopy had been torn off the boat by now too. I could hear them screaming and then I heard them enter the tunnel, their screams echoing.

"Grover! Get to the exit and help them, they won't be able to stop!"

"Got it!" He jumped out of the booth yelling "Maia!", and he took flight. Half of the little Cupid statue cameras were aimed at me, the rest at the tunnel and Grover. I turned away from another arrow, deflecting it from cutting into my arm with my sword. I ran at the baby Cupid, weaving between arrows or deflecting them as I approached. The camera on its head was focused in on my movements, probably airing to Olympus in split-screen.

Once I got within striking distance of the metal baby it swung at me with its bow. We exchanged like that for a few blows before I used my momentum to turn around and continue my strike into its side, hoping to throw the bow from its hands. Just as I was about to land the hit the Cupid's metal wing blocked the sword's path which resulted in a resonating clang.

I saw Percy and Annabeth's boat come flying out of the end of the tunnel in the distance and then I saw the locked gates in their path. I silently willed Grover to catch them once I saw them go flying into the air. I kicked at the statue and sent it skidding a little ways back.

"Hey, baby-face! The show is over there!" I pointed to where Grover had managed to intercept Percy and Annabeth's flight path and the Cupid surprisingly turned to the exit of the ride, its camera zooming in on their flight. Percy, Annabeth, and Grover crashed into one of those photo boards. I ran past the Cupid statue I had been fighting, readjusting my cap. As I came up to them they were just pulling Grover's head out of where 'Noo-Noo The Friendly Whale's face would be. The panic from earlier was draining slightly now that they weren't trapped on a boat heading toward being shredded like paper.

I turned back to the basin to see the statue I had been fighting drifting down onto its pedestal and settle in.

"You guys sprain anything?" I asked once we caught our breaths. They shook their heads no. The water level was still going down and the Cupid statues were still filming, spotlights in our faces. The boat Percy and Annabeth had ridden was in smashed pieces against the gate.

"Show's over! Thank you! Goodnight!" Percy called out to the cameras. The cameras actually turned back to their original positions and the spotlights were gone. The park was now very dark and quiet, minus the trickle of water still coming from the ride. "We need to have a little chat with Ares."

* * *

The big oaf was waiting for us in the diner parking lot. I kept tightening and loosening my grip on the hilt of my sword as we approached. I wanted so badly to just go and attack Ares, but that would be suicide.

"Well, well, you didn't get yourself killed."

"You knew it was a trap."

Ares gave us a wicked grin. "Bet that crippled blacksmith was surprised when he netted a couple of stupid kids. You looked good on TV."

Percy shoved the shield at Ares. "You're a jerk." My breath paused, sure he was about to vaporize us or something. Ares grabbed his shield, spun it in the air and it morphed into a bulletproof vest, which he slung across his back.

"See that truck over there?" He pointed to an eighteen-wheeler parked across the street. "That's your ride. Take you straight to L.A., with one stop in Vegas." The truck had a sign on the side, reverse printed saying:

KINDNESS INTERNATIONAL: HUMANE ZOO TRANSPORT

Warning: Live Animals

"You're kidding." Percy said flatly. Ares snapped his fingers and the side door of the truck unlatched.

"Free ride west, punk. Stop complaining. And here's a little something for doing the job." He slung a blue nylon backpack off his handlebars and tossed it over. I peered inside when Percy opened it to see some fresh clothes for the four of us, some cash, a pouch of drachmas, and some Oreos.

"I don't want your lousy-"

"Thank you, Lord Ares," Grover interrupted, giving Percy his best _'Shush before you get us all killed' _look. "Thanks a lot." I saw Percy grit his teeth. He reluctantly put the backpack over his shoulder. It looked as if he wanted to do something that would get us in big trouble so I put my hand on his shoulder and gave my head a small shake, giving him a warning look. _Chill, Percy. Just wait for him to leave._ He gave me a slight nod of acknowledgement.

"You owe me one more thing." Percy cut in before Ares could leave, trying to keep his voice level. "You promised me information about my mother."

"You sure you can handle it?" He readjusted his shotgun holster. "She's not dead."

Percy looked unsteady so I firmed my grip on his shoulder to give support. "What do you mean?"

"I mean she was taken away from the Minotaur before she could die. She was turned into a shower of gold, right? That's metamorphosis. Not death. She's being kept."

"Kept, why?"

"You need to study war, punk. Hostages. You take somebody to control someone else." I narrowed my eyes. A concept in which I was very familiar with.

"Nobody's controlling me."

Ares just laughed. "Oh yeah? See you around, kid."

Of course Percy couldn't just let him go without getting in one last dig. "You're pretty smug, Lord Ares, for a guy who runs from Cupid statues." I stepped on his foot harshly.

Behind his sunglasses fire glowed and a hot wind blew past us. "We'll meet again, Percy Jackson. Next time you fight, watch your back." He revved his engine again and took off down the street.

"That was not smart, Percy." Annabeth said.

"Not smart at all." I agreed.

"I don't care."

"You don't want a god as your enemy. Especially not that god."

"Yeah, Percy. You can't just let his aura mess with you like that. You could have gotten us all killed before the quest was completed. We have to make it through this for Sally, too." I said, sending a meaningful look. He looked down at his feet.

"Hey, guys," Grover said suddenly. "I hate to interrupt, but.." He pointed toward the diner. Two men were paying at the register. Both had on _Kindness International_ uniforms. "If we're taking the Zoo Express, we need to hurry."

We made our way across the street and climbed into the truck, making sure to close the door behind us. The first thing that hit me was the stink, it was like the world's biggest litter pan held within this place. It was dark until Percy uncapped Riptide, the blade casting a faint bronze light over the miserable scene. I drew out my sword to help visibility too . The cages of these animals were in extremely poor condition.

There was a zebra, a male albino lion, and some type of antelope. The lion had a stack of turnips inside its cage and the other two had trays of meat. The zebra's mane was matted with chewing gum and the antelope had a silver birthday balloon tied to one of its horns. The lion was pacing around on soiled blankets in a space that was way too small for the big cat, panting all the while. Flies were buzzing around his pink eyes and his ribs were painfully visible.

"This is kindness?" Grover raged. "Humane zoo transport?" He probably would have gone back outside to beat up the drivers with his reed pipes but the truck's engine roared to life. The trailer started shaking and we started moving so we were forced to sit down. We huddled in a corner on some feed sacks, trying our best to ignore the smell, heat, and flies. Grover talked with the animals but they just stared at him sadly. Annabeth wanted to break them free now but we pointed out that that plan wouldn't do us much good at the moment. We would have to wait to free them.

Percy busied himself by refilling the animals' water and swapped their food to what they were supposed to be as I munched on a small piece of ambrosia from my pack. The burn from the Chimera had healed but it was just the pesky cuts from that hellhound. They were taking forever to heal and I wanted to try to conserve the godly food for a true emergency. Grover managed to calm down the antelope enough for Annabeth to cut the balloon from the animal. She wanted to do the same for the zebra but that would have been too risky with the bouncing of the trailer. We had Grover tell them we would help them more in the morning, then settled in for the night.

Grover curled up on a turnip sack, how that was comfortable I didn't know but I didn't question it. Annabeth opened the bag of Oreos and ate one halfheartedly. She offered me one but I passed, I had never really been a big fan of Oreos. Give me a good old-fashioned homemade cookie any day. After that I slumped against the side of the trailer, using my backpack as a pillow. I unbuckled my sword belt and set it and the sword to my side. It was already June fourteenth, the solstice was a week away. Hopefully we wouldn't hit any major roadblocks.

I still wasn't sure what to think of the quest, the plan to confront my father about the bolt. I honestly didn't think he had it. It made me wonder why he sent the Furies after the quest group like he did unless he was a part of this grand scheme somehow_. Maybe something happened to him too?_ That would explain why Alecto and her sisters had asked where _it_ was. _So maybe another theft? _I wouldn't put it past my father to not mention a theft to the Olympians, they wouldn't really care, except maybe Hestia, but she wasn't an Olympian. I had closed my eyes for a couple of minutes or so before I heard my name.

"Allison?" Annabeth asked. She sounded a bit apprehensive. I opened my eyes.

"Yeah?"

"I've been thinking-why does it seem like you have experience with all this stuff? Like, being a demigod. You jumped right into this whole thing head first it seems. I mean, you were able to get rid of the Chimera and Echidna at the Arch once Percy had to jump. You were confident you could help on the quest when you convinced us to let you join. And I saw the way you moved while fighting in Capture the Flag, it showed experience. It wasn't one on one, but you were able to take them down." She shifted her feet a bit.

"Look, Ares said something earlier.. it may be unrelated, but do you remember how he said that it was a dangerous world? He said you should know, why is that?" She fidgeted. "He could be talking about the Chimera and the Minotaur, but that doesn't seem quite right, given how he said that."

"I'm betting on the monsters." I said, trying to sway her thought process. "And I with the Ares kids, I don't know how I did it, it just felt natural."

She nodded, pensive. "Do you and Chiron know each other? Aside from him just being your old Latin teacher, that is. You act familiar with him, not like a teacher-student relationship. Some of your comments once Percy left to see the Oracle, they gave me the impression that you already know a lot about this stuff. You seemed pretty emotional."

"Oh yeah, I remember that. What was that all about anyway? I still don't get it, but you were scary." Grover put in, jumping at the chance. I restrained myself from cursing aloud, of course this had to come back and bite me.

"Guys," But Annabeth was on a roll.

"I've heard you mumbling sometimes in your sleep. The name Nick comes up a lot. You asked Chiron if he.. if he wanted to get another camper killed. Did-"

"Annabeth, I am going to bed. You should too." I said as I took a deep breath. It had just been a matter of time until she ended up bringing this up. It was clear she had been thinking about it for a while now. This was the first time we've been all alone in a relatively secure, not public place.

"Chiron gave you those weapons, right? They used to belong to a former student?"

"Annabeth..."

"Did this Nick person die on a quest or something? Was he a friend?"

"Enough! I am not talking about this." My voice cracked slightly, then I exhaled a long breath. "Look, I'm sorry, but I'm tired. Goodnight." I finally said. I didn't want to have any more complicated questions thrown at me when we were trapped in a stinky Zoo transport truck. I scooted further away from the group, toward the antelope, and covered myself with a blanket despite the heat. I knew they still had questions, and would probably talk about it more once I was asleep, but I just wanted out at the moment.

They cautiously changed the subject, the boys not quite grasping fully what Annabeth was asking, but the tension was still in the air. They ventured into talking about Annabeth's story and Thalia. I stayed quiet and pretended to be asleep. Soon I heard Grover's breathing even out, a sure sign that he was most likely asleep. Percy and Annabeth talked about her camp beads and college ring. The last thing I remember before finally falling asleep was her saying she would stick by him.

* * *

In my dream I was looking in on scenes. It started off with a falling sensation, then the voice came. The same cold, evil voice from my previous dreams.

_"Deception upon deception." _The voice from the pit mused. _"Excellent."_

_ "Truly, my lord, you are well-named the Crooked One."_ The other's voice said. _The Crooked one? _I could only remember one figure with that name. Then it hit me and I felt a cold cluster of ice had formed in my chest. _No, it can't be. If he's trying to rise.. no. There can't be another war, there can't be. He should be scattered into a million pieces in Tartarus, I need to tell Chiron. _Then a moment of realization. _That explains the scythe I saw with the Fates._ My stomach dropped.

The other voice continued speaking. _"But was it really necessary? I could have brought you what I stole directly-"_

_ "You?"_ The voice said in scorn. _"You have already shown your limits. You would have failed me completely had I not intervened."_

_ "But, my lord-"_

_ "Peace, little servant. Our six months have bought us much. Zeus's anger has grown. Another pawn has been added to the table and Poseidon has played his most desperate card. Now we shall use that against him. We have the other child to use if that fails- her past makes her complicated but I believe she will be of use to us. I had not predicted her presence after I got that weak-minded fool to finish her years ago, but we might be able to take advantage of her return. Shortly you shall have the reward you wish, and your revenge. As soon as both items are delivered into my hands.. but wait. They are here."_

_ Someone else is seeing this with me?_ Then I thought it must be Percy, he was dreaming the same thing as me. _Oh gods, if he connected what that thing had said about me.._

_"What?"_ The invisible servant suddenly sounded tense. _That voice, it sounds familiar. "You summoned them my lord?"_

_ "No." _The full force of the voice was now washing itself over me, trapping my dream self in place. _"Blast his father's blood-he is too changeable, too unpredictable. The boy brought himself here, and the girl has a fluid mind, she has seen much and has strong ties to the boy. She followed."_

_ "Impossible!" _The servant said in shock. Then I started to make out a figure that looked like Percy. He was looking around to see who else was here.

_"For a weakling such as yourself, perhaps," _The voice said. Then it's cold power turned to me. _"So.. you wish to dream of your quest, half-bloods? I feel some background would be beneficial. Why don't you see who you put all your trust into _really_ is, boy?"_

The scene changed. I saw memories from all my missions, the liberations I had gone on, the battles, the time Nick and I had been captured. One interaction I had with a half-brother of mine came into focus right before we fought. _"Would you kill to save a life?"_ He had taunted. At the time it didn't seem as big, but that had haunted me ever since Chester and even those mortal guards he had in particular. But I had really killed Chester. Yeah, he may have been trying to kill me and Nick, so were the guards and my half-brother, but Chester's death especially just seemed so.. raw. It had been either Nick or him. I had to choose between two lives; which to save, which to end.

I saw bits of my journey with Nick to camp when we first discovered our parentage. When we met Chester for the first time and how he had helped us. We had trusted him, back then. Chester had been on a mission and we crossed paths. He gave us the knowledge we needed to make it the rest of the way to safety.

I saw that last battle again, but this time Percy was witnessing it too, looking in on the memory. I was able to see his face too, and when I made my final choice it hurt me the most. It was like I had betrayed him, that I would never have the same relationship with him again. I don't think he fully understood what he was seeing, but I could tell he understood enough for those feelings to form.

The scene changed again. I was in a vast black marble throne room with bronze floors. _Mount. Othrys, the Titan stronghold._ I felt as if I had goose bumps. The empty central throne was made from bones fused together. That part didn't really phase me, I had seen enough of the Underworld for that not to have an effect.

No, what got me was the scene at the foot of the dais. There were four people, just like my earlier dream. My loved ones, but the fourth this time was Percy. His body was chained up and he looked beat while the others laid there with him, all of them dead on the bronze floor before the throne. I tried to go to them but I was stuck in place. Dark figures formed around me that flashed with gold. I heard the cries of all who had met me in battle and anguished calls of the voices of the people I cared about. I was shoved down onto a throne that lay in the middle of bodies. Bodies of people I knew. The figures draped me with acidic like heavy cloths, the weight like sheets of lead, and put a golden wreath of laurels that smoked with poison on my head, eating into my scalp.

_Hail, the conquering heroine._ The voice from the pit laughed mockingly, enjoying taunting me. The voice who was trying to raise from Tartarus: Kronos, king of the Titans.


	21. Chapter 21: The Lotus Part 1

**AN 8/1/15:** Hello all! Sorry about the late update, I was away at camp all week and the week before I was super busy packing and doing horsey things. Thank you for understanding. I hope you enjoy this chapter, I worked double time to finish what I had once I got back a few hours ago. Be sure to leave a review of what you thought of this chapter, if you find any errors or odd things in it just tell me please and I will fix it, still fuzzy headed from camp. Camp was awesome if anyone was wondering, my last year though as a camper. Not sure if I want to be a counselor. Anyway, enjoy!

* * *

I woke up to a pounding pain in my head and the cuts from the hellhound stinging more than they should, my breath coming unsteadily. I felt my hand go to my head in an attempt to stop the pain from the dream.

"Crap." I muttered. Grover was busy shaking Percy awake when I looked up to see Annabeth above me. Then I saw Percy roll over and sit up. How he looked at me made me want to shadow travel somewhere and never have to confront that conflicted and confused face again. I could never truly put it to words. _He saw it all, Kronos will regret that._

I heard a truck door slam shut and Annabeth suddenly hissed at us to hide, slapping on her invisibility hat. Grover and Percy hid behind some bags of feed, Percy giving his head a shake and getting in the moment. I quickly moved myself, ignoring the brief stronger flash of pain in my head from moving so quickly, scrambling to pick up my sword and sheathed it. I dove into the corner of the truck, behind some more bags, and pulled the shadows around me, darkening them. The men who were driving the truck had pulled over. Then one of them opened the trailer doors and a wave of heat came in, followed by sunlight that made me force the shadows to stay around me.

"Man!" He said, waving his hand in front of his nose from the smell. "I wish I hauled appliances." He climbed in and poured some water from the jug into the animals' dishes.

"You hot, big boy?" He asked the lion, then proceeded to splash the rest of the water right in the lion's face. At least it helped get rid of some of the dust and muck but the lion roared rightfully in indignation. I narrowed my eyes at the man. Both of these men would not be shown in a great light for these acts once they eventually died.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." The man said. I saw that Grover's body had gone tense next to Percy and caught a murderous look on his face. The trucker pulled out a squashed looking fast food bag from his cargo pants pocket and smirked at the zebra.

"How ya doin', Stripes? Least we'll be rid of _you_ this stop. You like magic shows? You're gonna love this one. They're gonna saw you in half!" I saw the zebra look at Percy in a panic, probably trying to ask him to help.

Suddenly there was loud _knock, knock, knock_ on the side of the trailer. The trucker inside with us yelled, "What do you want, Eddie?"

A voice outside-who must have been Eddie-shouted back, "Maurice? What'd ya say?"

"What are you banging for?"

_Knock, knock, knock._

Maurice rolled his eyes and went back outside, cursing at Eddie the whole way. A second later Annabeth appeared next to the boys. She must have been the one banging to get Maurice out of the trailer. _Smart._

"This transportation business can't be legal," she said.

"No kidding," Grover grumbled, then paused, listening. "The lion says these guys are animal smugglers! We've got to free them!" They both looked to Percy, as if waiting for him to lead, but his gaze was still resting on where I was, looking almost like a kicked puppy. Outside Eddie and Maurice were yelling at each other but they would come back soon enough. Percy shook his head slightly, as if clearing his thoughts, and grabbed Riptide. He slashed off the lock of the Zebra's cage.

I unsheathed my own sword and went to the antelope's cage and I too broke off the lock. I put my sword away and pulled out my normal steel knife, approaching the zebra.

"I'm going to clear off that gunk from your mane." I said to it calmly as Grover was busy muttering a blessing. It snorted but didn't move away as I reached out, so I took that as an 'okay'. I made quick work of the wads of chewing gum trapped in its mane and once Grover was finished the zebra and antelope took off, bounding out of the truck; the zebra bobbing its head as it galloped with joy. Maurice and Eddie yelped in surprise and started chasing the animals, a few policemen trailing after them, shouting about permits.

"This would be a good time to leave," Annabeth said, looking out at the street.

"The lion first." Grover insisted, so Percy cut off its lock and Grover issued the same blessing to the lion as he had the antelope and zebra.

"Good luck," Percy told the lion as he went running into the streets. Some tourists screamed while most just backed off and took pictures - probably figuring it was some kind of stunt.

"Will the animals be okay?" Percy asked Grover. "The desert and all.."

"Don't worry," he comforted. "I placed a satyr's sanctuary on them."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning they'll reach the wild safely, finding all they need to survive until they find a safe place to live."

"Why can't that be placed on us?"

"It only works on animals."

"So it would only affect Percy." Annabeth reasoned. I smiled a little but the weight of last night still clung to me like an unwanted blanket. I made sure I had all my supplies with me and my sword belt strapped on. Percy protested Annabeth's comment but we decided to get going before anybody came back.

* * *

We trudged through the baking streets of Las Vegas in the middle of a hot desert afternoon. It must have been at least a hundred degrees. We probably looked like a group of toasty, reddened kids, but everybody was too interested in the spectacle we had unleashed to really care. We passed casinos like the Monte Carlo and MGM, along with replicas of pyramids, a pirate ship, and a Statue of Liberty.

I purposefully kept a number of steps ahead of Percy to try to avoid being confronted about what happened, taking the time to think over it all. Kronos was rising, and he had at least one insider in camp, maybe more. There were two items missing, not just the master bolt. Then what was piled onto that dream.. I hadn't been careful enough. Information had slipped too easily and it was just a matter of time before all the puzzle pieces were put together. I kicked at the ground in frustration as I walked. My damned head wasn't helping the situation either.

Percy though.. _Oh gods, Percy, what am I going to do?_ That betrayed, confused look on his face, he saw all those old memories, all the bad things. Kronos had painted my past in the worst light. _Hell, what about it was ever really good?_ I knew I was being my own worst enemy here, but what happened could have just ruined everything, nothing will ever be the same, even if he might not have understood everything. His face when I made the decision to end Chester before he could kill anybody, it was like a permanent weight on me. I could never forget it.

The last part of my dream, after the memories, really hurt though, a lot. Seeing my loved ones in pain or dead, that was always my weak point. It was like Kronos was holding them above me, just out of reach. I gripped my head in frustration, _Why did the Fates put me here? They had to know all this would come out, I should have been able to see my mother and Nick again once they died too! _It felt like I was robbed of something, the loss I had been feeling for years now, continually eating away at me. I had been okay with dying, but because I knew I would see them again eventually. It happened while protecting someone I cared about, and that was something worth dying for, but this twist? That was unplanned.

All of these thoughts made my get trapped in my mind as I walked aimlessly, memories dredged up. Getting sucked into the past was becoming more frequent now that I had returned to camp. It was worrying, I couldn't let it affect me like this, but there were just so many reminders. I found myself holding the picture of me and Nick as we passed through Las Vegas. I only realized it once Annabeth said something about it.

"Who is that?" That had pulled me out of my thoughts. Annabeth was peering over at the picture. _Styx._

"What?" I asked stupidly, unable to come up with something better so abruptly. By now Grover and Percy were also trying to get a better look at the photo. I quickly pressed it against me and put it back in its box, stuffing that back into my pocket.

"Who is in that picture with you? Looks like you were at camp, but I don't know that boy. When was this taken anyway? It looks old." She continued.

I heard Percy whispering to Grover, hinting at his dream last night. He had recognized Nick.

"But you're in the picture, how-"

"Look, it's nothing. Alright?" I snapped. They all looked at me, I had never snapped like that before, even last night I had restrained myself. My head started hurting more as I pressed on, lengthening my strides, searching for what, I didn't know.

We must have taken a number of wrong turns because we found ourselves at a dead end standing in front of _The Lotus Hotel and Casino._ The entrance was a huge neon flower, the petals lighting up and blinking in assorted patterns. Nobody was going in or out, but the glittering chrome doors were open, spilling out sweet, sweet air-conditioning that smelled of lotus blossoms.

"Hey, kids. You look tired, you want to come in and sit down?" The doorman smiled at us. We all shared a suspicious look despite earlier. It could be another trap, then Percy must have decided that the man sounded sincere enough and said we would love to come in.

Once inside we took one look and Grover summed it up pretty nicely with an awed: "Whoa."

The whole lobby was one giant game room. Not just older games though that you would see in a regular casino, no, there was an indoor waterslide wrapping around a glass elevator that must have gone up at least forty floors. A climbing wall on the other side of the building (not in demigod mode), and an indoor bungee-jumping bridge were there too. There were virtual-reality suits with working laser guns and hundreds of video games, each at its own widescreen TV.

They had basically anything you could imagine in this place. There were a few other kids playing, but not that many. Not many adults either, mainly just staff, which I found odd. Waitresses were walking around and there were snack bars littered throughout the lobby that served every kind of food.

"Hey!" A bellhop said. He was wearing a white-and-yellow Hawaiian shirt with lotus designs, shorts, and flip-flops. "Welcome to the Lotus Casino. Here's your room key."

"Um, but.." Percy stammered.

"No, no." The man said, laughing. "The bill's taken care of. No extra charge, no tips. Just go on up to the top floor, room 4001. If you need anything, like extra bubbles for the hot tub, or skeet targets for the shooting range, or whatever, just call the front desk. Here are your LotusCash cards. They work in the restaurants and on all the games and rides." He handed each of us a green plastic card. This had to be a mix up of some kind, or a trap. We took the cards anyway, me pocketing mine in my jeans.

"How much is on here?" I asked.

"What do you mean?"

"She means, when does it run out of cash." Percy supplied.

The bellhop just laughed. "Oh, you're making a joke. Hey, that's cool. Enjoy your stay." I raised an eyebrow at the comment but didn't say anything.

We took the elevator upstairs and checked out our room. My head felt like it was getting worse the longer we stayed. Our room was split up into two separate bedrooms, each with two waterbeds, both adorned feather pillows; one of the boys, and one for me and Annabeth. There was a hotline to room service and fluffy white towels hung in the double bathrooms. A big-screen television with satellite and high-speed Internet was in the central room. The balcony had its own hot tub, and sure enough, there was a skeet-shooting machine and shotgun. Our room's view was of the Las Vegas skyline and desert beyond, it was amazing to say the least.

"Oh, goodness," Annabeth said. "This place is.."

"Sweet!" Grover finished. "Absolutely sweet." I saw Percy peering into the closet to see clothes that looked as if they might fit, which I found disturbing. He tossed out the backpack Ares gave us too. I chose the room to the left and laid down on the bed while everyone took showers and got snacks. My head was not my friend today. So many things just seemed, _wrong._ I let out a humorless laugh, that was the perfect description of my life now-a-days. I left my door open to the main room though so I could see when the boys came out.

After a while, Percy, Annabeth, and Grover were all hanging out in there, watching TV and eating snacks, thoroughly the perks of this place.

I heard Percy tease Annabeth about her choice of TV and I noticed Grover's shoes sprout wings and lifting him a good foot off the ground and back down without him even realizing it, munching on some food the whole time.

"So what now" Annabeth asked, taking a look into our room. "Relax?"

The boys exchanged giddy looks and grinned. They both held up their LotusCash cards.

"Play time." Percy said. I told them I would catch up with them later and they headed out, but Annabeth stayed behind. She cautiously came into our room and took a seat on the opposite bed. She was fiddling with her Yankees cap, then she finally looked up.

"Allison, Percy told me a little about the dream he had that had you in it." I sighed. "He said he recognized that boy in the photo I asked you about earlier. Was that that boy, Nick?"

I knew I wouldn't be able to keep this a secret anymore, I nodded.

"When was that taken? You came to camp at the same time as Percy, or did you? Why do I think that when you said Chiron gave you those weapons because you reminded him of one of his former students, that he was referring to you? That picture looked old enough to be from World War II times.."

She tucked her leg under her other, pensive. "Percy told me about something Echidna said while you were fighting in the Arch. She said that you were meant to die 'long ago', but what confuses me is that Percy's known you since you were toddlers- things aren't lining up. You have that scar on your arm that looks like it's from an old sword cut, then the ones on your stomach and back. I saw them when I was helping heal you after the Minotaur. They were aligned.. it would have been a bad blow." I closed my eyes as she continued, holding onto my bracelet tightly.

"The pieces weren't fitting together well until Percy mentioned that the metal in the weapons Chiron gave you was black. That sounds like stygian iron. I've only heard about that stuff, but the books say they were only used by.. well, the last recorded time of demigods using that type of material was in WWII-the time of the picture by my guess."

She took a deep breath. "Look, I think I know, and it's a little farfetched, but I won't tell anyone. You can trust me. I know you really care about Percy and his mom. I don't care who your parent is, I won't judge you. Now don't want to jump to conclusions, but I just find it kind of hard not to. Chiron told me a story a few years ago in passing, he even showed me a picture of the girl from the story. I didn't make the connection until now, but I knew I recognized you from somewhere. It was from the story of the daughter of Hades who was on our side during the war. Was.. was that you, Allison?" _Can't pretend anymore, she hit the nail on the head._ I opened my eyes.

"Yes." I held my breath, waiting for her reaction.

"I thought so, but.. how are you here now?" _That's the million drachma question._

"Honestly? I don't know. I just woke up here years ago with Sally after what happened." I found myself tapping the comforter. I hadn't talked to anyone about this besides Chiron.

"Percy somewhat described what he saw in his dream. Did you really do all those things?"

I hesitated. I didn't know how Percy had taken it for sure, but judging from his face it wasn't well, but I didn't want them to think that they couldn't trust me. I can't let something like that happen again.

"Annabeth I... it was a different time. I don't know how much Percy told you or how much he understood, but it was tough back then. You have to understand, if you were someone like me there was a huge target on your back every second of the day. So many were dying, being in the position I was in.. it was risky. Everyone was so ready to jump at you if you were at all related to the enemy, there were a lot of bad things my half-siblings were doing. We were all just kids... children don't belong in war, but they always seem to get caught in the crossfire, don't they?"

She nodded slightly.

"Can you tell me more about it?" She asked apprehensively. I thought on it for a minute or so, debating. Annabeth seemed trustworthy, she hadn't run off to tell anyone yet, and she had helped save Percy with the Furies and Medusa. She had been waiting to talk to me about it until we could talk in private. She was so young though, she hasn't been out in the world like how it was though, but I feared that would change with Kronos trying to rise. I had a tough time trusting people so quickly, especially given how it was back then, but I decided to take a gamble. Chiron trusted her, and so did Percy. I took out the little box and removed the picture. I looked at it for a few moments, then handed it to her.

"That is-was.. Nick. Nick Evans, a son of Zeus. We were best friends." She gently took the photo and examined it, her grey eye taking in every minute detail. "We grew up together in Colorado, before we really knew about everything. Then things got complicated for us." I continued. I went on to tell her our story, but not all of it, some things I wasn't ready to share yet. Annabeth paid rapt attention, never taking her eyes off me or the picture, never interrupting. I stopped my story before that last day.

She sat there for a few minutes, absorbing all the new information, then handed me back the photo.

"Wow, you've really got some fighting under your belt. What happened to Nick, if you don't mind me asking. Do you know?"

"No, I don't know. Chiron wouldn't tell me." I bit my lip. I might be able to find out when we're in the Underworld, along with my mother.

"Was it a big shock when you woke up so many years later?" I looked at her with a face that said, _Seriously?_ She blushed. "Sorry, stupid question. But you're another child of the Big Three though, have you ever met your dad?" I nodded.

"Do you have any powers? Thalia had some, and Percy does too."

I nodded again. "I don't know what Percy may have mentioned from his dream, but the shadows and earth are kind of my thing. I'm not the best at dead stuff-never have been, not really my forte." She nodded, noticeably a bit uncomfortable at the mention of the last power set children of Hades could have. I had tried to summon skeletons in the past but after just a couple I had drained myself so badly that I hadn't woken up until the next morning. It had always bothered me that that power set was weaker than the others, but I guess I couldn't be too picky.

"What do you think about this quest? Going to the Underworld and all?"

"Whatever happens, happens. I have my ideas about what might go down, but I am willing to take the risks for it, and to get you three back out especially."

"Well, I'm glad you joined the quest either way, Allison. You have helped a lot, especially with the Chimera and all. It's kind of nice to know that there is someone who has done this kind of thing before with us, like how you were able to defeat those Ares kids and the trips you went on. It is always good to have an experienced fighter on the team. Don't feel like you have to carry everything on your own though. We're a team for a reason, I can see you feel like that from your eyes."

"Experienced fighter all right.." I laughed under my breath, but nodded. Then Annabeth asked what I had been dreading.

"What happened.. in that final day? How did it happen, from your perspective, not Percy or someone else's. I know from what Chiron told me that an older camper was involved, but Chiron never went into, um, details. It's always better to hear a story from its source though." She rushed a bit on her explanation, obviously nervous about asking, but wanting to know. I couldn't really blame her though, it's not every day that something like this happens. Heck, I could be her grandmother if I had lived until now.

I exhaled a long breath slowly, readying myself. From the start I knew the conversation would lead here. I started off with explaining the premise of the mission, how we had to block the monsters from getting into the camp to the younger campers. Back then we had no magic barrier. Then I told her about the battle and then I told her about Chester.

"Chester, he had always been a bit eccentric about the war.. always ranting and such. But closer to the time of that mission, he had gotten exceedingly riled up. I would catch him shooting me glares too, but I stupidly didn't pay attention." My fingernails dug into my palm.

"At first, during the fight, he tried to get my with lightning, but I managed to avoid it, thanks to Nick. We fought, he said some stuff about my _'kind'_ always causing problems, saying how it was the last straw. He claimed we would never be welcomed - he had it in his mind that I was spying on camp for them." I laughed, voice devoid of humor. "After all I had done for camp, and he still thought that?" But I stopped myself from saying more. Kronos had pushed him over the edge, but it wasn't all Kronos either. That thought just sent another pan through me. He was trying to rise, he had helped cause all this.

I shook my head, shaking the thoughts out. "Anyway, we fought, used some powers, etcetera. He hadn't had any experience fighting against someone like me before directly, but Nick and I used to have practice fights using powers, so that helped. I knew what to expect, plus I had seen him fight before. A Cyclops distracted me though, that's when I heard Nick-Chester had managed to disarm him and hold him at sword point." I scowled to myself, I didn't want to think about that memory especially. I didn't meet her eyes but I could tell she was taking in every drop of information.

"None of the other campers noticed so options were limited. I had no guarantee either that if Chester were to tell them how they would react either - for or against me. You don't know what it was like back then, even now I have to keep it a secret. Nick tried to get me to leave, but the look in Chester eyes.. I knew he wouldn't just let him go, he was too far gone. I pretended to surrender and dropped my normal sword. By then the others had noticed and were trying to talk Chester down but it was no good. I made one of the girls I knew from around camp promise to get Nick back to safety no matter what happened. She had always been nice to me."

I fingered my necklace, turning the pendant around in my hands. This weapon had helped end lives. One could think that if you're a child of Hades, or another Underworld deity, that you wouldn't have any qualms about ending a life, but they would be wrong-at least for me. I had never liked killing, a person's life matters, it isn't just a simple little thing that should be ended at a whim. It wasn't too hard for people who deserved the fields of punishment - and there were a lot of people back then who did, but innocents always got caught up in the mess. Whether it be in the battle, a monster attack, wreckage, or someone's twisted wrath. No one person should be able to dictate a person's life.

I realized that I had gone quiet so I started speaking again. "I knew death was near, but for who I didn't know, but I knew what I had to do. I saw my chance and I took it. I got a rock to separate the two to get Nick out of immediate danger but Chester recovered quicker than expected." I activated my necklace and held up the weapon, the darkness of the blade tugging at the shadows of the room ever so slightly.

"We never wanted that kind of life, you know? But us demigods don't get a choice in that. Honestly though? I don't think I would take all of what happened back if I could. We did our best, and we made a difference. It shaped us and we came out stronger, we were more connected and aware. I would never take back how it happened too-if I was to go out saving my closest friend, well I was and still am content with that. I might not even be here today had it not happened. I'm making new memories now, and I'm going to make them count. I just wish I knew what happened to him.." I paused for a breath, giving my head a bit of a shake. This wasn't the time for what ifs.

When I looked back to Annabeth she had an almost torn look on her face as she rested her fingers on her first camp bead. I realized then that she was probably thinking about her friend Thalia's sacrifice and I noticed how similar our cases were.

"Well, that doesn't matter right now. Chester attacked with some powers so I had to change plans and use the shadows to get to him. We saw each other once I came back out and we both swung." I lowered my knife so it was resting on my ankles, painfully aware of what happened next and that eerie flash of gold in his eyes. After a moment I looked up at her and met her eyes. "Would you kill to save a life?" I ended it with that. I didn't talk about the gold or Nick and I's last words to each other. Those last minutes I held close to me. I couldn't let anything about Kronos slip either, she was a smart girl. Heck, she had figured out who I was, but the news about Kronos would just cause a panic. We had to play our cards right.

"Nick, he promised I wouldn't be forgotten and it looks like he made sure of that. You can't choose your parentage, but you can choose the legacy you leave behind." I made my knife return. My head still hurt but less so, as if getting all that off my chest helped.

"I'm just worried about how Percy is reacting, how much he saw and how he is understanding it. I don't want him to think he can't trust me, or you and Grover for that matter too." I looked to her again to see her with a pensive look on. Then she got up, paused in front of me, then gave me a hug. I wasn't expecting that type of reaction so I froze. She detached herself after a couple seconds.

"Allison, what you did was the right thing, I won't judge you for it. If anything what you did just shows what great and strong person you are. You had some tough choices, but you worked through them. That was a really brave thing you did, and to accept it like that. I'm sorry about Nick though, but thank you for telling me, and I do trust you. I will keep this between us unless you tell me not to. As for Percy, well he will come around. I'm going downstairs to let you have some alone time. Get some rest and get cleaned up. I will meet up with you later." She concluded, stuffing her cap back into her pocket. She paused at the door for a moment but then left to go meet up with the boys in the almost mythical land of games.

I sat for a little thinking over what just happened and decided I should get out of my head, get off my butt, and do something productive like getting cleaned up-I needed it. I hopped into the shower and washed up, finding a new pair of clothes from the closet and put them on, throwing my hair up with one of the hair ties generously provided for us in the bathroom. I snagged a few for later too. They were so much better than hair ribbons. It is always best to fight with a clear view of your surroundings so I might as well take advantage of what was supplied while I can.

The choices of the closet were actually pretty good too. There was this nice jacket that I decided to take despite the heat outside. Even if it we were in a place in the desert in the middle of summer, I had started to feel a bit chilly. It was a simple dark leather-jacket-hoodie mix that had a lot of hidden pockets; perfect for a demigod. As I put the jacket on something shiny caught my eye. It was a silver ring that had a silver Cerberus on it, which was odd, but on an impulse I took it.

I got rid of the stuff from Waterland and refilled my backpack with supplies, making sure to restock our food and water. I found something for my head in the cabinet behind the mirror and decided it was time to meet up with the rest of the group. I chose to take my pack with me, I had a feeling that I wouldn't be seeing this place again for a while.

* * *

Be sure to review your thoughts! Enjoy your week!


	22. Chapter 22: The Lotus Part 2

**AN 8/8/15:** Hello! So I just wanted to say I really hope you like this chapter, it took a lot of thought and plotting, good and evil ;) Also I wanted to leave a note for Olo Eopia03 once they get to this, thanks for the in-depth reviews, they are really awesome to read and to know others are enjoying the story to that level is pretty sweet. I have been working with my one friend (Let's call him Bob, ie. the one who helped me start this awesome journey) for more things and ideas, I have a nice load of evil plots now, more than my usual. Thank you guys for understanding about camp week but I am looking forward to reading your reactions to this chapter. To the Guest who commented, I'm honestly not sure how well I could write a story based off of those two, I am not as familiar with the characters to that level to write them to what I would consider well, but thank you for your comment! I am primarily invested in Into the Darkness at the moment though, but that doesn't mean I am not open to ideas. It's really cool to see the general demographics of where all you guys are from, I even saw someone from Denmark on there. Tak for at være fantastisk. (I have a friend over there). Either way it is awesome to see the regions where you guys are from and to think that people are reading this from that far away! Thanks for all the follows and favorites though, I will cut this short though as this is getting long, but thanks again all of you for being awesome!

* * *

Once I got back downstairs into the main games area I started my search for the others. As I walked past flashing lights, enticing video game music, and snack bars, I eventually passed some boys who looked to be wearing clothes that belonged in the time I grew up in. As I grew closer I managed to pick up on some of their conversation.

"Hey, did you see that dame by the mini-golf? She's got some moxie to her, am I right?" One with blonde hair said, nudging his friend with his elbow and gesturing to a girl a little ways away. His word choice almost made me stop walking. Nobody I knew from this era used those kinds of terms anymore, especially at the age the boys looked to be. Those terms had been popular when I was a kid. This place didn't feel right.

I had been looking up at some kids going down the waterslide when I bumped into something hard and stumbled back, nearly falling but I grasped something soft to steady myself. I looked to see what I had run into to see a girl about my age, maybe a little younger, recovering from the collision as well. I quickly released her arm - at least it seemed to have steadied her too. She had dark hair, brown eyes, and some freckles. She seemed familiar but I couldn't place her.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going!" She fumbled out, fixing her hat.

"No, no. It's okay, I wasn't looking either, sorry. My name is Allison, by the way." I smiled as I stuck out my hand to her. It may have been odd saying introducing myself randomly like that but I just felt I owed her that at least. After a moment she shook it, casting a glance around as if looking for someone.

"Bianca. Hey, have you seen a boy about this tall," She held up her hand to show. "Who looks like me and probably holding some cards or rambling about Mythomagic? He's my little brother, Nico. I can't find him anywhere. I left him alone for one second and I turn around and he's gone." She asked. I noticed that her hat was floppy and green, and she had on a long skirt, almost like one I would see from other girls at school with Nick. Again that struck me.

"Oh, no. I haven't seen anyone like that, sorry. But I can help you look for him if you want?" I knew I had to find the others, we were still on a quest after all, but I just felt compelled to help her, like we had a connection.

She hesitated for a moment, looking at me as if debating trusting me, then spoke. "Sure, thank you. I think he went this way, come on." She pointed in the direction of a retro-themed snack bar.

We set off, both looking around for her little brother Nico. Bianca had a familiar slight Italian accent, something I hadn't heard in a while from someone her age. Kids now didn't really have accents very often, at least from that area of the world. Everyone's families had been living in this country longer unlike families in my time. Their accents had faded with the years. My mother used to speak with a slight hint of a similar accent, but over time it had gradually started fading. I was younger so I grew to not have that, though it did come out sometimes from when I was little before school started. People in the area we lived in spoke English and Spanish more commonly as well, so I had picked up a little Spanish, but it was still strange to hear someone with an accent like that again.

Now that I actually looked I realized that Bianca and I shared some pretty similar features. We both had our dark hair and brown eyes, even sharing freckles between us. We had similar facial features in a way and both of us seemed to hint at an older time too. _This is too weird... _ I had this feeling that I couldn't quite identify yet.

"There he is!" Bianca suddenly said, pointing to a games table. "Oh, no." She quickly grabbed my wrist and rushed us over to the scene. By the tables was a young boy, probably about ten by my guess, holding a stack of cards, backed against a table. Cornering him were two older boys, about fifteen. By the way they held themselves they gave off the impression of trying to be intimidating to Nico, or making fun of him. They were cornering him either way. I scowled as I saw one of the boys, the one with a 90's teen punk wannabe look, smack the cards out of Nico's hands and burst out laughing. The cards fluttered to the floor, landing in disarray.

Bianca and I arrived and she quickly took a hold of Nico, pulling him behind her. I stood a little off to the side, ready to step in if needed. I wasn't too fond of these boys even before speaking to them. I didn't like bullies, the people who were in class with me knew that well.

"What are you doing with my brother? I thought I told you to stay away from these guys, Nico!" She looked back at him for explanation.

"I-I don't know. They just came up to me while I was sorting my new expansion deck." He said, clearly feeling threatened by the older boys, and I didn't blame him.

"Look at this kid, Felix, hiding behind his sister." The one who knocked the cards away laughed and pushed Bianca so she bumped into Nico behind her, but to her credit she stayed between them. My eyes narrowed. The other, who I assumed to be Felix, responded.

"I know right, Chester? He's always walking around with his head in those cards for babies, hiding behind his sister like a sissy." I froze as I heard the first boy's name: Chester. A painful feeling hit my gut, right where the last Chester I had known left his mark. I stepped quickly between Bianca and Nico and the boys before I even knew what I was doing, holding my arms out to make it clear that if they wanted to mess with them they would have to go through me, fixing them with a hard glare. I don't know what compelled me to do that exactly, maybe it was because another Chester was doing things like that to someone, or the growing feeling of needing to protect these two, like a protective older sibling. Plus the fact that they had started getting physical to Bianca.

"Hey, baboon faces! I suggest stepping back and leaving, you don't have any business here. Leave them be." I stared at the boys, daring them to argue. They just looked down at me and laughed. Both were taller than I was by a considerable amount but that wouldn't stop them from getting their butts handed to them if they didn't leave within the next ten seconds. Height difference never stopped me from beating Nick, nor would it these boys.

"Wow, someone's full of herself. Who even are you? I've never seen you around before, shorty." This Chester taunted.

"Who are you to pick on a little kid? He was doing nothing wrong, what makes you so privileged to mess with his fun? Do you think you are you Churchill, or FDR? On second thought, you are too petty to be them, they would never pick on a little kid like that- my bad."

"What's that supposed to mean?" He asked, his tiny brain probably trying to process the insult.

"It means you are acting like a petty little maggot when you pick on them, is that clear enough for you?" My temper was rising, just like with the Ares kids when they tried picking on someone younger and supposedly weaker than them. As it was they both got a more ticked off look on their ugly faces.

"Come on, kid. Just move." Felix said, but Chester wouldn't have it.

"Well aren't you just trying to be a little hero then, aren't you? Where's your cape?" This Chester took a step closer.

"It's about to be stuffed down your throat." I thought that was pretty good censoring, but they weren't a fan of that comment apparently either way. This Chester, as fast and hard as he probably could, tried to shove me but I turned and sent a punch straight into his nose. Hard. The pent up anger finally snapping. I heard Bianca gasp behind me and Nico say, "Whoa!" under his breath.

"What the hell! That freaking girl actually _punched _me!" He yelled as he turned to his buddy, clutching his nose to staunch the blood flow.

"Aw, did wittle Chester get a boo-boo? Does he need a kiss from mommy?" Felix then tried to shove me but I swatted away his hands and activated my necklace. I held my knife protectively in front of us, pushing Bianca and Nico back a bit further behind with my other hand. I could easily take out these two idiots without it, but I wanted to leave a lasting impression. Clearly they had messed with the siblings before and I wanted to make it clear not to do it again, in the very least for Bianca's peace of mind.

Both boy's eyes widened and they took a few steps back at the sight of my knife appearing seemingly out of nowhere. I silently praised myself for choosing the stygian iron over steel; much better for effect.

"If you don't leave right now, and never mess with Bianca or Nico again, I will let you go. But I assure you, if you choose not to, I am _very_ handy with this and not afraid to use it. Just _try me._" I spoke in a low tone, pulling the child of Hades aura we were famous for. We could be scary when we wanted to be. I felt this section of the game room grow darker in response to my mood, the sounds of the games getting further away. I turned my knife too as I spoke, pulling a page out of Ares's book and cleaned my fingernails slightly to display the dark blade and how at ease I was handling it, just for extra effect.

I usually didn't like doing this to mortals, but these idiots messed with the wrong people. The dunderheads looked at each other, fear in their eyes, nodded quickly at me, then booked it.

I put away my knife and turned back to Bianca and Nico, the game room lights returning to normal. Nico had started collecting his fallen cards after the two boys left and Bianca was staring at me wide eyed. I crouched down and picked up the cards nearest me. I handed them back to Nico and he took them gingerly with a goofy child like grin on his face, placing them on the top of his deck. It was nice seeing kids happy. Some of my favorite memories were the town dances during the summer and seeing the little kids dancing around to the music, laughing and giggling as they jumped around. It made me miss those simpler times.

"That was amazing, you're so awesome! How did you do that? Where did you get that?" He asked excitedly, bouncing on the balls of his feet after he had finished quickly gathering the last of his cards.

"It was nothing. Those boys deserved it, picking on you like that. That's just flat out being a bully. And that, Nico, is a secret." I held up a finger to my lips for emphasis, smiling at him. I suddenly felt arms around me squeezing. I winced a bit but I returned the gesture, albeit slightly awkwardly.

"Thank you, Allison. I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't intervened. Usually they just say stuff then get bored and go away. I just met you but you stood up for us. That was the nicest thing anyone has done for us." Bianca said as she pulled away. I blushed at all the praise. All I did was what was right, those kids were asking for it anyway. Had Nick been there they would have probably ended up in the pool at the end of the waterslide anyway.

"Here Allison, that's your name, right? I want you to have this!" Nico said as he pulled on my sleeve and put one of his Mythomagic cards in my hand. I looked down at the card and read the character, then got a sudden chill even with my new jacket on. The figure on the card was Hades. I looked back to Nico, who was currently bouncing even more than before.

"Um, thanks Nico. I don't know what to say. I'll be sure to keep this safe, I can tell these cards mean a lot to you." I stored the card in the box with the picture of Nick for safe keeping. My hand brushed against something and I had a spur of the moment idea. I pulled out a Chimera tooth and put it in Nico's hand.

"Here, I want you to have this too, as a reminder to always be brave and stick up for others. Also, that way we will have something to remember each other by, alright?" His eyes widened to make his expression look almost cartoon like. He reverently accepted the spoil of war and held it up to his eyes for a closer look.

"Wow! Thanks! This is sooo cool! What type of tooth is it? It looks big!" He asked eagerly, giving me that huge smile, and continued examining the tooth, still bouncing in excitement. He was definitely a hyper kid.

"Hm, well.. let's say it's a Chimera tooth, from your card game. You can put it on a necklace or something if you want, that's what I think I'm going to do with mine." I took out the second to show him. "They match, two of a kind."

Bianca was looking at our exchange. "You know, he will never stop talking about this now, right?" She told me but she had a small smile. I felt like I couldn't leave Bianca out though, even if she wouldn't use it, it was still something. She seemed like a brave person. Hopefully she would never have to put it to use, but it just felt like the right thing to do.

"Sorry, and actually, I think I have something I want you to have, too. This has gotten me out of a good number of tough situations in the past." I pulled her a little ways away and slipped my steel knife from its hiding place and handed it to her, hilt first. "Even if you don't use it, which I wouldn't want to think you would ever have to, it is still something." I said quickly after seeing her face.

"I can't accept this.."

"Maybe not, but I am leaving it here either way. I want you to have it though, for good luck. Besides, I still have some tricks up my sleeve, it won't handicap me to not have it. I probably have enough things like it anyway." I took her hand and placed the knife- sheathe and all in it, and closed her fingers around it. I was lucky Annabeth had decided to take my sword for the time being, she said she wanted to see if there was any place she could practice for a bit with it. It would be kind of tough explaining a sword strapped to your belt.

"Bianca, if worst comes to worst, you can protect Nico with it. He is a good kid, but he still needs some protection from everything by someone like you. I can tell he looks up to you. You never know what is out there in the world. Look up some movies maybe about fighting, never know when it will be useful, especially with jerks like those boys around. Stay within view of the staff members here if you want the extra security too for however long you are staying here, but I don't think those two will mess with you again. I can see you, with a little practice, being able to beat knuckleheads like those up easily." I said as I met her eerily familiar eyes.

She hesitated but nodded. "Okay. It's just me and Nico. I can't remember a time before when it was just the two of us though. It's weird, but thank you. I will keep him safe, and that might not be a bad idea."

"Don't forget to take care of yourself too." We went back over to Nico, who was busy shuffling through his cards like he was looking for one in particular. "It was really nice to meet you two, we will have to talk again some time. But I have to go find my friends, they are probably looking for me right now." I said in realization, remembering the whole reason to me being here in the first place. I had gotten so wrapped up in what was happening that I forgot for a short time. I had to go see what the others were up to and decide when to leave. This place still made me jumpy, it was just off-kilter.

"Found it!" Nico said as he brandished his Chimera Mythomagic card, then he processed what I said. "Aw, you're leaving?" He was clearly not happy about his new buddy with the awesome stuff to leave so soon. His cheery expression dampened a bit. This kid was just a ball of energy though. I looked to Bianca for help, I knew she would understand my need to go.

Bianca nodded and spoke to her brother. "Nico, she has to go for now. We will see her again, don't worry." Nico complied but he still had that sad kid look on his face.

"Well, I'll see you two later. Stick together you two, you are a good pair. Best of luck to you." I started walking off and offered a little wave back at them. They looked a bit disappointed, and I was too to be honest, but I knew I had to go.

* * *

By the time I found Percy he was trying to snap Annabeth out of her building game.

"Come on Annabeth, we have to leave, like now!" He was saying but to no avail, she was having none of it. When Percy saw me coming a brief look of confusion and confliction crossed his face, but he seemed to push it aside, a desperate type of look in his eyes, and closed the distance between us. Once we met up he told me what he had discovered.

"Ally, there are kids here from the 70's who don't age! They still think that it has only been a few days since they arrived too. We have to get out of here! You check in but you never check out! Help me get Annabeth, then we can find Grover." He told me as he started dragging me over to where she was playing. My sword was resting propped against the machine to the side, forgotten. I scooped it up and re-clipped it to my belt. I didn't like the implications of what Percy told me, but I couldn't spend time fretting about it. We needed to get out ASAP. What I did realize though was the name: The Lotus Hotel and Casino. Just like the Land of the Lotus Eaters in the Odyssey. Odysseus had to drag his men away from that place. This was the perfect modern-day version of that. Heck, you didn't even need to eat anything special to get wrapped up into the plot of the place; one look inside and you are instantly hooked.

"Annabeth, it's time to leave the game for a bit, come on. You can go back to it later if you want, we have to plan. You like that stuff, remember?" I tried as I attempted to tug her away but she stood firm. "Annabeth, come on. I'm serious, there's danger." Still nothing. I looked to Percy and his face suddenly brightened and he quickly came up to her.

"Annabeth, spiders. Large, hairy spiders." He told her, looking her directly in the eye. That jarred her and her vision cleared.

"Oh my gods," she said. "How long have we-"

"I don't know but we've got to find Grover."

We started to search for him and after a bit we finally found him at a Virtual Deer Hunter game. The game was flip-flopped too so the deer were the hunting the humans, very enticing for satyrs.

"Grover!" We yelled.

"Die, human! Die, silly polluting, nasty human!"

"Grover!" He turned and aimed the plastic gun at us and started clicking, as if we were just another image projected from the game. We shared a look and took Grover by the arms and started dragging him away. His flying shoes tried to put up a fight but we managed to make headway toward the door. "No! I just got to a new level! No!"

The Lotus bellhop from earlier hurried up to us once he saw what was happening. "Well, now, are you ready for your platinum cards?"

"We're leaving." Percy told him.

"Such a shame," he said sincerely. "We just added an entire new floor full of games for platinum-card members." Grover tried to reach for a card from the man's hands but I swatted his hand and we dragged him away.

"No, thanks." Annabeth said to the bellhop, giving him the evil eye.

As we walked toward the door the smell of food and the sounds of the games increased, but to me it just made my headache get worse. The magic of the hotel attempting me into going back was doing just the opposite. The magic was failing to work on me until I suddenly thought I heard a voice and turned around on impulse. It was a voice I hadn't heard in years and hearing it made my heart ache, the familiar longing for the people of my past storming into me like a hurricane to a beach. I could swear I saw a glimpse of light brown hair further back in the Lotus. I stopped dead in my tracks, a flurry of emotions raged through me, cementing me in place. _Is it him? _Before I could go any closer to get a better look I was pulled out of the doors.

I absently took off my jacket and stuffed it into my backpack, the desert heat hitting me. _That had to be just a trick, it has to be, he's gone._ But I still felt like I needed to go back but Percy didn't give me the chance. I walked in a daze as he quickly brought us to the nearest newsstand. As he did I idly noticed the backpack from Ares was back on him. I went up next to him as he grabbed a paper and caught a look at the date on the newspaper after I saw his devastated look. I knew what that felt like, times a few decades, and now I was experiencing it again. It was already June twentieth. We had been in the Lotus for five days, less than roughly half a century, but still really bad. We had just one more day left to complete this quest and bring Zeus the master bolt, one day to the solstice.

* * *

That evil cliffhanger though. Lots of development, be sure to tell me what you thought! Have an epic week!


	23. Chapter 23: Pearls and Creepos

**AN 8/15/15:** You will have to wait and see, Paper Kaine. I do have multiple evil plots in mind, but you are right, they will mainly kick off once this book is completed. I now understand why Rick Riordan enjoys writing things like throwing the main characters into their version of Hell.

* * *

I was extremely torn about what happened in the Lotus but Annabeth gave no more room for debate than Percy did as she loaded us into a taxi. I faintly remember the conversation she had with the driver and the use of her LotusCash card. The card was the only real thing that stuck out in my mind through the fog. _It has lots of money on it, could I use it to get back here?_ We were currently speeding our way through the Mojave Desert. I made a mental note to myself to be sure to keep the card for later. Annabeth had the driver set course for the Santa Monica Pier so we had time to kill on the ride.

Percy started telling us formally about his dream, but he was having trouble remembering some of the details. I silently hoped that he didn't remember the part of his dream that I was in, and he did only tell the part of the dream with Kronos and his servant, not me, so I was okay with that for the time being. I would still notice weary looks he would send me but my mind was still back in Las Vegas.

What I was not okay with was what went down in that cursed Hotel. So many people pulled out of their natural time to live, never ageing. They were stuck like living on an island in time, the flow of time pulling past it as you are still there on the island, stranded. Bianca and Nico were there. I didn't know how the heck they came to be there but I felt like I was stuck in what I should do. If I were to somehow come back and get them out of the Lotus there would be the big culture shock and I wouldn't be able to explain the time change to them without telling them about the Greek world.

Would it be better to leave them in there, blissfully unaware of the outside world changing and together without many worries, or take them out and force this world onto them? I just couldn't do that, if I was to ever go back there and do it, it would be like knocking the ground out from under them. Nobody they would have known would be how they were back then, I couldn't do that to someone else. I had that happen to me and I just couldn't bring myself to do that to others, especially those two. I had been lucky enough to find Sally, they didn't have anyone and I couldn't just bring them across country back home. Sally had enough money troubles as it was, and them going into some home felt wrong. Even with the LotusCash card I didn't think we would be able to have them live with us. I felt such a need to protect them though, to shield them. I just couldn't do that to them. I forced myself to pull my mind away from that for now, I would figure it out after the quest. Right now getting the master bolt back to Zeus was top priority. Thinking about Zeus just made me remember my last seconds in the Lotus though, Nick. _No, not now. They are talking about the quest, don't do that to yourself._

"The Silent One?" Annabeth was suggesting after what I figured was Percy mentioning how the servant had called the voice by a certain title. "The Rich One? Both of those are nicknames for Hades." She cast me the briefest of looks, but then quickly set her eyes back to Percy as he spoke.

"Maybe.." But I could tell he was still uncertain. I sure as heck wasn't going to tell them the title that follower used either though, that would just cause a panic if I did. We had to get the bolt back first, then I could talk with Chiron, warn him, and then we could decide what to do.

"That throne room sounds a lot like Hades's," Grover said but I shook my head silently. That place was way more malicious than the Underworld's court. "That's the way it's usually described." I resisted raising an eyebrow. That throne room was way too evil to me my father's, too ancient. That was on Othrys, the throne room of the Titans.

"Something's wrong. The throne room wasn't the main part of the dream. And that voice from the pit.. I don't know. It just didn't feel like a god's voice."

I saw Annabeth's eyes widen.

"What?" Percy asked quickly.

"Oh.. nothing. It was just-no, it _has_ to be Hades. Maybe he sent the thief, this invisible person, to get the master bolt, and something went wrong-"

"Like what?"

"I-I don't know," she said. "Bu if he stole Zeus's symbol of power from Olympus, and the gods were hunting him, I mean, a lot can go wrong. So this thief had to hide the bolt, or he lost it somehow. Anyway, he failed to deliver it. That's what the voice said in your dream, right? The guy failed. That would explain what the Furies were searching for when they came after us on the bus. Maybe they thought we had retrieved the bolt." Annabeth finished, looking pale. I knew she had an idea as to who the voice belonged to but was afraid that she might be right.

I did my best to give her a reassuring look but when she looked at my eyes I avoided hers.

"But if I'd already retrieved the bolt," Percy said. "Why would I be traveling to the Underworld?"

"To threaten Hades," Grover suggested. "To bribe or blackmail him into getting your mom back." I had a passing thought about how they seemed pretty open about using the gods' names, even with all the paranoia surrounding 'the power of names'.

"You have evil thoughts for a goat." Percy whistled.

"Why, thank you."

"But that thing in the put said it was waiting for _two_ items. If the master bolt is one, what's the other?" Then it hit me like the sun after emerging from the Underworld. The reason why my father had sent the Furies after Percy, his Helm of Darkness must be gone too. _How could I be so _stupid? _All the signs were staring you right in the face. You know how he thinks, of course he would send the Furies if something like that had gone missing!_ _Gods.. if Kronos got a hold of _both_ the master bolt and the Helm.. _ I felt myself grow paler.

Annabeth was busy watching Percy, as if she knew what his next question was and was willing him not to ask it and luckily didn't notice my color change.

"You have an idea what might be in that pit, don't you?" He asked her. "I mean, if it isn't Hades?"

"Percy, just drop it." I told him, trying to save Annabeth from having to answer.

"And you! You sound like you know what it is too. You've been so secretive. What are you not telling us? Why do I keep getting these flashes in my head of you fighting a ton of things? You've been so confident this whole quest, heck you even snuck out to join it because you said you knew you could help us, like Annabeth said in the truck. What are you not telling us?" He demanded. I felt a lump in my throat form and if possible my color drain even more. I had been hoping he didn't remember his dream at all given the after effects of the Lotus, but apparently not. At least it wasn't the full thing. He still knew though, or at least had a general idea - enough to distrust me. It hurt me to see that look on his face. I shrunk back further in my seat. It was just like the face Nick had when he got badly clawed in the back by a hellhound during one fight and I shadow traveled him out and went back to help finish it, even if I was injured myself.

"Percy, leave it. The answer is in the Underworld." Annabeth said firmly, returning the favor. "You saw spirits of the dead, there's only one place that could be. We're doing the right thing." She tried to boost morale and ease the tension between everyone by suggesting different strategies, but it didn't help much. Getting into the Underworld wouldn't be the problem, it would be getting out.

For the rest of the trip we sat in the tense air of the back of the taxi, my mind buzzing with all that had happened.

* * *

At sunset the taxi dropped us off at the beach in Santa Monica. It looked exactly the way L.A. beaches did in the movies, and how I remembered them to be, but the smell was way worse. A few carnival rides were lining the pier and palm trees were alongside the sidewalks. Homeless guys were sleeping in the sand dunes and surfers were still in the water, hoping to catch one last good ride in before the sun set. We walked along the edge of the surf.

"What now?" Annabeth asked. The Pacific was turning gold in the setting sun. I saw Percy hesitate for a moment, then step into the surf.

"Percy? What are you doing?" Annabeth asked. He just kept on walking until the water was up to his waist, then chest.

"Do you know how polluted that water is? There are all kinds of toxic-" But her voice died out when his head went under.

"Allison, I have to know. You know what it is, don't you?" Annabeth asked after a minute. I didn't meet her eyes. We had to get back to camp before I told them who it was, unless she figures it out for sure that the voice was Kronos's first.

"What is what? The voice?" Grover asked but neither of us replied. He opened his mouth a couple times but closed it again, as if trying to word something right. "Allison, the way you reacted with that picture, and with Chiron, it's like Annabeth said, it's like you have been to camp, but I would know if you had. Look, I don't know what Percy was seeing in his dream, it could just be something that thing is putting in his head to try to throw him off. I know you're keeping something from the rest of us though, I just can't figure out what."

I sat down heavily on the sand looking out at the sunset. For all I knew it might be my last, there was a chance that I would have to stay down in the Underworld forever. I was okay with that more before what happened in the Lotus, now it is like there are loose threads ready to be unraveled. There was more to this than what I first thought. I didn't want to get my hopes up just to be let down, but I was starting to feel like where Nick might be now just might not be where I had thought. I felt my fingers drawing patterns in the sand.

"Look, there is a lot I can't say. You just have to trust me, and don't mention any of this to anyone outside of the four of us. Everything will make sense soon, I promise you that. After this quest." I finally formed the words that I hoped would settle both of their questions. Grover was shuffling back and forth on his hooves and fiddling with his reed pipes. Annabeth sank down into the sand next to me and nudged me a bit with her shoulder.

"It will be okay. I get that you can't say, but we are with you. As I said, you're a great person, I was able to see that just from how you acted around others when we first met, but everyone has their troubles." _I think this is a bit more complicated than what ice cream I should choose, if that is what most people consider their troubles to be._

"Yeah, what she said. I've known you and Percy since Yancy. You are pretty cool. Friends stick together, sorry if I was making you uncomfortable."

I smiled a bit as I ran my fingers on my bracelets slowly back and forth. "Thanks, that means a lot. After this quest.. well after this quest I will tell you everything. I just need Chiron to be there, he knows too. For the matter of the quest though, don't worry. We will get in and out of the Underworld safely. I am making sure that everyone gets out." My hand closed around my sword bracelet. "But if something does happen, I.. I need the two of you to get yourselves and Percy out as fast as you can no matter what happens. Don't wait for me, I can handle myself. If Percy tries to fight you, remind him of Sally and the quest." I knew the boys would figure out who my father was soon but I would still hold onto them not knowing for now. I didn't know if I would be coming out with them, but I would do all that I can to get them out even if it killed me. They deserved a long life.

For all I knew, Hades might just kill me to set things to how they should be anyway. He couldn't break the rules he was supposed to enforce, even for one of his kids. I knew that in the very least we would have to confront him, my dream had shown that much. He would not be happy about one of his nephews entering his domain either. If I had to I would shadow travel the three of them out of there. At this point I didn't care what toll it would take on me after not traveling like that for this long. It felt like the walls were closing in on everything, soon it would be no more.

"You sound like you're expecting us to have to make a quick exit." Annabeth said. I didn't reply. I looked back up at the setting sun, "Percy will be fine in that water, by the way. Nothing can harm him in there."

"You've known for a while now, even before camp, who he was, didn't you?" Annabeth asked. I nodded and left it at that. We sat in semi-comfortable silence as we waited for Percy to come back out of the water and tell us what happened. I myself just sat watching the sun fading as I remembered all my memories of living with Sally and Percy.

Once Percy eventually came back out he was completely dry and we quickly got to our feet to question him. He told us what happened with the Nereid and showed us the pearls. There were only three. We all looked at each other, the unspoken question lingering. I already knew is answer though, I would be the one without a pearl.

"It will work." I told them before anything could be said.

"No gift comes without a price." Annabeth grimaced.

"They were free."

"No." She shook her head. "'There is no such thing as a free lunch'. That's an ancient Greek saying that translated pretty well into American. There will be a price. You wait."

With that happy note we used some of the spare change in the backpack Ares gave us and took a bus to West Hollywood. At one point Percy had gone up to the driver to ask if he knew where DOA Recording Studios was, but the man recognized him. He made up a quick lie and we made sure to get off at the next stop. I knew generally where the entrance was, but the city had changed so much. We wandered around as I looked for any familiar landmarks and them anything. We ducked into alleys twice to avoid cop cars.

As we walked by an appliance store window Percy stopped. On the screens was a man I had the misfortune of knowing all too well. There, on the television being interviewed by Barbara Walters was Gabe Ugliano. She was interviewing him in our apartment, in the middle of a poker game, with a young blonde lady sitting next to him patting his hand.

A fake tear glistened on his cheek. He was saying, "Honest, Ms. Walters, if it wasn't for Sugar here, my grief counselor, I'd be a wreck. My stepson took everything I cared about. My wife.. my Camaro, stepdaughter.." I could tell that last part was forced due to the fact that his left eye twitched ever so slightly, and that I was still listed as "missing". Not saying anything about me would raise questions. "I-I'm sorry. I have trouble talking about it." He finished. _Grief counselor my butt._

"There you have it, America." Barbara Walters turned to the camera. "A man torn apart. An adolescent boy with serious issues. Let me show you, again, the last known photo of this troubled young fugitive, taken a week ago in Denver." The screen cut to a grainy shot of the four of us standing outside the Colorado diner, talking with Ares.

"Who are the other children in this photo?" She asked dramatically in typical news anchor fashion. "Who is the man with them? Is Percy Jackson a delinquent, a terrorist, or perhaps the brainwashed victim of a frightening new cult? When we come back, we chat with a leading psychologist. Stay tuned, America."

"C'mon," Grover told us, hauling us away before the glass was mysteriously shattered. What a shame.

It got darker and sketchier characters started coming out. I was able to see fairly easily into the dark alleyways so I was able to steer us away from the worst of it. Modern day L.A. had a totally different feel than modern New York. Back in New York you could be safe if you knew your stuff. L.A. on the other hand was much larger than I remembered more chaotic. It proved harder to navigate.

I had my hand on my bracelet, ready to activate it the whole time we walked. My regular sword wouldn't be any good against a mortal if the need came up and I might need the reach over that of my knife. I had given my steel one away to Bianca anyway, so the stygian iron would be best against mortals and non. It was better to be prepared. We walked past raggedly dressed groups of people that I bet if we were closer, you could smell easily. All looked as if they were debating whether we were worth mugging or not.

They were about to turn down another street that had an alley a little ways down, but I saw a group of bodies and the glint of metal.

"This way," I said quietly and I redirected us. That would be going the wrong direction anyways. The aura that the entrance to Hades gave off was strongest if we kept going straight.

"Why not?" Annabeth asked.

"Gang little further in with what looks like weapons. Don't wanna go down there. I have a good feeling about going straight though." I got a raised eyebrow in response, but we continued straight anyway. As we passed an alley I was busy looking at a group of people further down the road I heard Annabeth yell "Hey!". I quickly turned around. A man from the alley had grabbed her arm and had a knife held in a wobbly hand. He reeked of alcohol and his eyes were bloodshot.

I quickly stepped forward, hitting my right forearm hard against the hand with the knife, successfully knocking it out of his hand. I then proceeded to grab his other arm, put myself in between Annabeth and him, bend and toss him over my shoulder. He landed on the sidewalk with a thud and groaned. I pushed Annabeth back with my body and activated my knife, still grabbing his arm. I roughly rolled him over onto his stomach, putting one foot firmly on his back and pulling his arm back to keep him locked in place. I wouldn't want my arm in that position, personally.

"_Do NOT touch her!"_ I hissed and made a deft kick to his ribs and I nailed him in the back of the head with the hilt of my knife. He was out cold so I let go of his arm and stepped back. I looked to the others to see them wide eyed and mouths open.

"How - where.." Grover stuttered.

"Um, thanks, Allison." Annabeth said, stunned.

"No problem.. guy was drunk off his ass anyways. I'm just going to roll him into the alley then let's leave."

"Gasp! Ally actually cursed!" Percy said with a grin. I rolled my eyes at him but I was smiling. That little bit of teasing showed that he wasn't extremely upset with me still. I rolled the guy with my feet back into the darkness of the alley and made sure to leave him on his side against the wall so incase he threw up he didn't choke. He would wake up with one killer of a migraine tomorrow anyway, but I didn't necessarily want him to die, even if he is a creep. I kicked his cheap knife under some garbage bags and we continued on our way.

After a few wrong turns we finally made it to DOA Recording Studios on Valencia Boulevard, or simply the entrance to Hades.

"We're here."

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Its weird to think this book is almost complete. Anyway, enjoy your week! Comment what you thought :)


	24. Chapter 24: Bacon?

**AN 8/21/15:** So I have decided that being unable to sleep for hours is where you can get your best, and evilest ideas. I am still up from yesterday, and I will leave you to interpret the second part as you so choose. ;) Sorry this is a bit of a short chapter, but the next one is nearly 6k, so I think it evens out. Have an awesome week!

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We stood outside in the shadows made by the street lights of the surrounding buildings on Valencia Boulevard, looking up at the gold letters etched into the black marble: _DOA Recording Studios._ The building had changed but it still gave off the same feel. It was like a central point that radiated the feeling of the Underworld from the city above, a beacon for the dead to flock to. Stenciled underneath the name on the glass doors were the lines: _No Solicitors. No Loitering. No living._ It was almost midnight but the lobby was still brightly lit with figures of the dead inside, waiting for their chance to take the ferry down. Behind the security desk was someone I recognized. He still looked like a tough security guard, but with the addition of sunglasses and an earpiece.

"Okay, remember the plan. If I tell you to use those pearls, use them right away. No questions asked." I reminded, giving them each a stern look.

"I still don't get why you won't take a pearl." Percy muttered.

"What happens if the plan doesn't work? What about you? Percy's right." Annabeth asked. I knew she knew why I wouldn't let a pearl be used on me, but she still didn't like the idea of me possibly getting stuck down there and unable to come back with them.

"I don't like that plan very much." Grover said.

"Don't think negative." I insisted.

"Right, don't think negative." Grover said. "We're entering the Land of the Dead and we shouldn't think negative." I saw Percy slip the three milky white spheres the Nereid gave him back in Santa Monica out of his pocket. They would have to work, if not, I had my emergency plan.

Annabeth sighed but put a hand on Percy's shoulder, then mine. "I'm sorry, you're right. We'll make it. It will be fine." She then gave Grover a nudge.

"Oh, right! Sure, we got this far. We'll find the master bolt and save your mom. No problem." I smiled at both of them a bit and I saw Percy doing the same. _They're good friends._ Then I realized with a start that was the first time I actively thought of Annabeth and Grover as friends on this quest. It did have a nice ring to it though. They were forcing down their own fears and trying to be brave. I needed the little boost of confidence. Everything was about to unravel, big time after all I had done to keep it secured. At least if I didn't come back I had the chance of seeing my mom again, and possibly Nick. I felt my expression darken at that thought. The Lotus had thrown a big wrench in that, putting that little insistent speck of doubt in my head.

Percy pushed the pearls back into his pocket. "Let's whup some Underworld butt." He concluded. This was one of those times when you just forced yourself onward and tried not to think of the implications.

We walked inside the DOA lobby. Music was playing softly on hidden speakers and the carpet and walls were still the steel grey they had been. Pencil cacti grew in the corners, resembling skeletal hands to give that extra effect. _Well that's new._ Some ghosts looked up at me in recognition once we stepped inside the doors. I just shot them a look and kept on walking. Charon was just as I remembered him, just with the addition of the sunglasses and earpiece. His chocolate-colored skin almost like Thanatos's and bleached-blonde hair shaved military style. He wore his new tortoiseshell shades proudly and a silk Italian suit to match his hair with a black rose pinned under his silver name tag.

Before I could say anything Percy spoke up. "Your name is Chiron?" Bewildered.

Charon leaned across the desk, our reflections appearing in his shades. His smile was sweet and cold.

"What a precious young lad." He said with his near British accent. "Tell me, mate, do I look like a centaur?"

"N-no."

"Sir." He added smoothly.

"Sir." Percy repeated.

He pinched his name tag and ran his fingers under the letters. "Can you read this, mate? It says C-H-A-R-O-N. Say it with me: CARE-ON."

That was enough of that. I stepped forward and said, "Charon, _abbastanza. Siamo qui per vedere Lord Hades. Passiamo, sai chi sono_." I switched into Italian to keep the others from knowing what I was saying, but I basically had said that we were here to see Lord Hades and to let us pass as he knew who I was. Charon narrowed his eyes at me. I knew he knew the language too, so he couldn't play dumb.

"_Chi sei tu per-ahh, vedo. Molto bene allora, signorina Cooper_." He said with a scowl, clearly not happy to have lost the chance to mess with some demigods and a bit of surprise on his face as he recognized me. I knew my friends were probably staring at me, jaws dropped, but I didn't want the boys to understand our conversation. Annabeth probably could pick out some words but I didn't mind that - she already knew who I was. "Do you have coins for passage?" He asked. I pulled out two of our last three drachmas and handed them to him. "That is all we have for now, I will make sure you get the other once we are on the other side."

"Fine." Charon sighed and lead us over to the elevator door. "The boat's already almost full, I guess I would be able to fit you four." He opened the elevator doors to reveal a group of spirits, each holding a green boarding pass. They made room for us as I walked in, Percy, Annabeth, and Grover following. I saw Charon grab two spirits who were trying to sneak on and push them back into the lobby.

"Right. Now, no one get any ideas while I'm gone." He announced to the spirits who were still waiting. "And if any of you mess with the dial on my easy-listening station again, you will be staying for another thousand years. Understand?" There was a bit of chattering in response.

Charon shut the doors and put the key card into the slot in the elevator panel and we started our descent.

"Allison, what was that? Where did you learn that?" Percy asked.

"I don't spend all my free time doing school work." I supplied. In truth that is all my grandparents had spoken so I had to learn it when I was little to talk with them. That was only when I was younger though, as they were gone by the time I was in camp, but I had done some refreshing in this life to be able to still have that bit of my old self. I didn't want to forget any of it.

As we descended Annabeth asked about the spirits in the lobby but I just focused on what to do upon arrival. Soon the elevator changed and we were now on Charon's classic ferry. The air had turned misty and the spirits were changing, now wearing grey hooded robes. The further we got, the better I started to feel, my energy returning. Some of the wear from this quest felt like it was being erased. _I might just be able to shadow travel okay with the boost this place gives me._ My eyes returned to Charon, who was wearing his traditional long black robe now to match the spirits, his eyes showing their empty, darkness filled sockets.

Grover complained about getting seasick as Charon brought us across the Styx. It was more polluted than the last time I had seen it too, there were more swirling bones, dead fish, and personal items - some of the coinciding with modern day tech. It was kind of sad to think that those were some of the things people's lost dreams and wishes were. Life should be more than just technology. Charon explained to the others about the river as I watched the approaching shore. Mist was curling off the water and the ceiling was filled with stalactites. _Some things never change._

The far shore glimmered with its poisonous greenish light. I saw Percy starting to look more visibly agitated, Annabeth looked a little panicked too, so when she grabbed Percy's hand she grabbed mine as well. I squeezed it, comforting her, telling her I wouldn't let anything bad happen to her while I was around. She probably just wanted to know she wasn't alone down here, that I was still here too. I started hearing Percy muttering softly as we went.

As we grew closer to the shoreline, the craggy rocks and volcanic black sand became even more visible, stretching inland about a hundred yards to the base of the Walls of Erebus. I heard Cerberus howl in the distance and I found myself looking at my new ring.

"Old Three-Face is hungry," Charon said, smiling to show his grizzled bone-white teeth. "Bad luck for you, godlings."

"Not helping, Charon." I muttered.

The bottom of our boat glided onto the sand and the dead began to make their way toward the gates. A little girl looked back at me as a woman, her mother, led her away. I gave her a reassuring smile. She was so young, I could tell she wouldn't get a bad placement.

"I'd wish you luck, mate, but there isn't any down here." I pulled out our last drachma from the bottom of my bag and gave it to Charon. "Mind you, it would do you well on your credit to mention a pay raise for me. My job is a hard one." I just sent him a look as he went off singing some Barry Manilow as he brought himself back across the Styx. Three coins would qualify for three people, children of Hades had free passes, so if he thought I owed him he was jumping the gun.

We followed the path up to the gates. This part of the Underworld was remodeled to look like a cross between an airport security station and the Jersey Turnpike. The three separate entrances panned out before us. On the black archway was a sign formally welcoming us to Erebus. Each entrance was fitted with a metal detector and security cameras with the tollbooths manned by more of my father's servants. Cerberus started howling again and I saw him even more clearly than I had on the boat.

The dead were queued up at the lines, the _EZ Death_ line moving much faster than the other two.

"What do you figure?" Percy asked Annabeth.

"The fast line must go straight to the Fields of Asphodel," she speculated. "No contest. They don't want to risk judgment from the court, because it might go against them."

"There's a court for dead people?"

"Yeah, with three judges. The original ones were King Minos," I had to hide my distaste when I said that name. He always seemed like he was up to something, manipulative. "King Rhadamathus, and King Aeacus. Now the judges are people like Thomas Jefferson, Shakespeare, the old Kings-people like that. They look at a life and decide their placement. Elysium for the good, punishment for the particularly bad. The people who choose to be reborn and achieve Elysium three times get to Isles of the Blest. Most people kind of just lived though, nothing special. Those people go to Asphodel." I supplied. Annabeth gave me an appraising look, clearly impressed with my knowledge. I don't know what she was expecting, a child of Hades not knowing about the workings of the Underworld? That's just weird.

"And do what?" Percy asked.

"Imagine standing in a wheat field in Kansas. Forever." Grover put in.

"Harsh."

"Not as harsh as that," Grover muttered. "Look." A couple of the ghouls had pulled aside a spirit and were frisking him at the security desk. The man I could tell, and recognized to be, a preacher who had made the news recently. He used to be this annoying televangelist from upstate New York who'd raised millions of dollars for orphans, or whatever his claim was, and got caught spending the money for himself. He died in the police chase when he drove his car off a cliff.

"Oh yeah, that was that preacher guy. What're they doing to him?"

"Special punishment from Hades," Grover suggested. "The really bad people get his personal attention as soon as they arrive. The Fur-Kindly Ones will set up an eternal torture for him."

I noted how Percy shuddered slightly at the mention of the Furies. He then went on to ask about people's versions of hell. As Grover explained it to him we grew closer and closer to the gates. We got quiet as Cerberus's howling got so loud that it shook the ground at our feet. He was now fifty feet ahead of us, the green mist shimmering. He was standing where the path split into their lanes. He looked slightly transparent to the normal eye, only able to be seen when you were "closer to death." He was staring straight at us.

"He's a Rottweiler." Percy said, clearly stunned. _Yeah, a wooly mammoth sized Rottie._ The dead were walking casually right past him, no fear at all. You only had to worry about him if you were still alive. The dead were dead, after all, so nothing to fear. The attendant on duty lines split on either side of him with the _EZ Death_ lane going straight under his furry belly.

"I'm starting to see him better, why is that?"

"He can smell the living, and we are really the only ones who aren't partially transparent. He guards the gates. You can see him better because we're getting closer to death, figuratively." I informed them as Cerberus's middle head craned toward us, sniffed, and let out a low growl, eyeing Percy in particular. He could probably smell the sea on him.

"That's okay though, right?" Grover asked, trembling next to Percy. "Because we have a plan."

"Right," Annabeth said. I'd never heard her voice sound that small before. "A plan." We moved closer. I had my hand on m wrist, ready to activate my sword if things turned bad. I wanted to try to see if the plan worked without having to take control. His middle head snarled, the barked so loud I felt the vibrations in my chest.

"Can you understand it?" Percy asked Grover.

"Oh yeah," he said. "I can understand it."

"What's it saying?"

"I don't think humans have a four-letter word that translates-exactly."

Percy took a step back as Cerberus's eyes narrows on him. He pulled out a stick he had picked up above. "Hey, Big Fella, I bet they don't play with you much."

"Percy.." I cautioned and Cerberus just growled.

"Good boy," He said weakly. He waived the stick and the middle head followed the movement but the other two had their eyes trained on him.

"Fetch!" Percy threw it and it landed in the Styx.

As it was, Cerberus was glaring at him, unimpressed already, his eyes baleful and cold. He was now making a deeper sort of grown in his three throats.

"Um, Percy?" Grover said.

"Yeah?"

"I just thought you'd want to know."

"Yeah?"

"Cerberus? He's saying we've got ten seconds to pray to the god of our choice. After that.. well.. he's hungry." Time to start my Plan B.

I quickly stepped forward in front of Percy and the others. "Annabeth, give me the ball." I ordered softly, holding my hand out behind me, never taking my eyes off of Cerberus. I heard her quickly unzip her bag and I felt the ball be placed in my open hand. It was about the size of a grapefruit and had Waterland's advertisement logo on it.

"Cerberus! Sit!" I commanded, holding the ball over my head. His three heads looked stunned but his attention was fully on me. "Sit!" I commanded again, taking a step closer, reaching out with my other hand. I slowly approached, not knowing if this would work with the others here. I came closer and closer until I was within arm's length of one of his front legs. I slowly reached my hand out and put it on his leg, working my fingers through his hair a bit.

His three heads leaned down and sniffed me. I stayed tense but still made sure I looked to be in charge. I had petted him before in another lifetime, but I didn't know if he would recognize me. I would bring him pieces of bacon as treats sometimes back in the day whenever I was down here. I think he was trying to sniff out treats.

"Cerberus, lay down." I said sternly, lowering the ball, causing his heads to follow. He whined a bit, waiting to get the toy. He plopped down with a gigantic _thud._ I heard someone behind me take a sharp intake of breath. I tossed up the ball for one of his heads to catch. "Good boy!" I said, gently stroking his paw.

"Allison, h-how are you doing that?" Grover asked.

"Walk calmly around him and into the _EZ Death _line. Now." I replied, gesturing with my head in the direction of the line. I heard them slowly approach, the quickening of their pace as they walked past me and into the line. Cerberus's middle head was chewing on the ball now while the furthest was trying to get a hold of it. The head closest to where I stood was resting on the ground before me. I cautiously started petting his head, warming up to his surprisingly soft fur. I had only interacted with him so much in the past, but I made a note to myself to do it more often. He pushed his head closer to me as I continued to scratch it.

"Good boy. I have to go now, but I promise that I'll visit to play with you as often as I can." I said, giving him one last pat on the head, smiling, and made my way over to the line where Percy and the gang were.

Once I got to them I let out a big sigh of relief. I didn't know going into it if that plan would work. He was pretty friendly with me if I was alone, but with other demigods present, especially a son of one of Zeus or Poseidon's there.. well it could get messy.

"Come on, let's go." I said, tugging Percy and Annabeth up to the line. The second we pushed through the metal detector it started screaming and set off flashing red lights that pierced the fog around the Styx.

"Unauthorized possessions! Magic detected!"_ Damn._ I didn't have time to discretely stop the chaos without my father of the Furies being notified. Heck, they already would be with that alarm echoing around.

"Go!" I yelled and led us through into Asphodel. A few minutes later we were hiding, out of breath, and in the rotten trunk of an immense black poplar as security ghouls plunged past, yelling for backup from the Furies.

"Well, Percy, what have we learned today?" Grover murmured.

"That Allison is magic and three-headed dogs prefer red-rubber-balls over sticks?"

"Yes and no." He told him. "We've learned that your plans really, really bite!"

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Tell me what you thought! I'd like to know, it helps a ton :)


	25. Chapter 25: Into the Lion's Den

**AN 8/28/15: **Hello! So this is the long awaited chapter. I am eager to hear your responses after reading this. It is an extra long chapter too, as I wanted these events to be in one chapter together. Thanks for the reviews, glad to know some of you guys wanted to read more! I have decided to have a wrap-up "chapter" after the contents of the story is posted, informing you about what is next, even if it is discouraged to just have an AN chapter with no content. I have a bit of writer's block at the moment for the second book, so you will have to hang in there when the time comes. Anyway, enjoy!

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After the swarm of security ghouls "decided" to move their search to another area of Asphodel we left the poplar. I felt a slight drain on my brain from subtly "helping" their decision but with the boost being down here gave me it wasn't an issue. We traveled over the black, trampled grass, squished my eons of dead feet. A warm, moist wind blew through the air like what you would feel at a swamp. More black poplars, like the one we hid in, dotted the landscape and the whispers of the souls around us trying to communicate surrounded us.

I found part of my mind was drifting through the different spirits around us, some part of me half hoping to sense someone familiar, but no such luck. Asphodel was huge. As we walked, the idle information of the different spirits stories were there for me to browse through. All it would take was for me to focus in on one soul in particular. For the most part I also managed to avoid the ghosts trying to chat with me, but I had to give one or two a glare or shoo one with a shooing away gesture with my hand to send them away.

The cavern ceiling was so high above us that it often looked like it could have passed for a bank of storm clouds, minus the stalactites that broke through. They glowed a faint grey and looked very, very pointy. A few fallen ones were littered across the fields. I saw the others looking up nervously once or twice, fearing them coming lose and falling on us, but I wasn't worried. I would be able to sense it before it happened. We passed a black tented pavilion with a banner that read:

_Judgments for Elysium and Eternal Damnation_

_Welcome, Newly Deceased!_

Out of the pavilion snaked two lines, one to Elysium, and the other to the Fields. That particular one was flanked in some of the security ghouls we had seen before to guard for runaways. You could just make out the Isles of the Blest within Elysium from where we stood.

"That's what it's all about," Annabeth said a bit dreamily. "That's the place for heroes." There were very few in the Isles. Then a sudden thought struck me. What if Nick had chosen to be reborn if he died? I would never have the chance to see him again then. I felt a pit form in my stomach, I hadn't thought of that before. I had always just hoped that it would work out that I didn't even let myself think of that possibility. I swallowed hard, there would be some record of it then if he did. I could find out.

After a few more minutes of walking in silence my father's palace came into view. The black obsidian palace of myth. Around the parapets swirled the Furies. I got the feeling they were waiting for us to arrive and I found myself tapping my fingers against my leg next to my sword. There was such a sense of foreboding.

"I supposed it's too late to turn back," Grover said wistfully.

"We'll be okay." I comforted. I saw Annabeth send me a look but I didn't meet it. I would make sure they would be, me, maybe not as great a chance.

"Maybe we should search some of the other places first," Grover suggested. "Like, Elysium, for instance.."

"Come on, goat boy." Annabeth said as she grabbed his arm. All of a sudden he yelped, his sneakers sprouting wings and his legs shot forward, pulling him from Annabeth's grasp. He landed flat on his back in the trampled grass.

"Grover," Annabeth reprimanded. "Stop messing around."

"But I didn't-" He yelped again. His shoes were flapping like crazy now. They levitated off the ground and started dragging him away from us.

"_Maia!"_ He yelled, but the magic word didn't have any visible affect. "_Maia,_ already! Nine-one-one! Help!"

I cursed under my breath and took off after him, drawing the sword at my side in the process. Percy tried to take one last grab at Grover's hand but it was too late. He was picking up speed fast, skidding down the hill. Percy and Annabeth quickly followed, taking off downhill.

"Untie the shoes!" Annabeth shouted to him.

It was a smart idea, had he not been flying across bumpy ground while being dragged hooves first. We kept after him, straining to keep him within sight as he ripped between the legs of spirits who chattered at him in annoyance. I thought he was about to barrel straight into the gates of the palace but his shoes veered sharply to the right and dragged him in the opposite direction.

The slope was getting steeper and Grover was picking up speed. We had to sprint to keep up, the boost of energy I got from being in my father's domain helping push me ahead of the others. The cavern walls narrowed on either side, like we had just entered a tunnel. Then I sensed something really bad, very close by. It was like a cesspool of negativity and misery ahead. I got a really, really bad feeling about where Grover was heading. It even smelled of evil.

"Grover!" Percy yelled, his voice echoing. "Hold onto something."

"What?" He yelled back. He was grabbing at the gravel but there was nothing big enough for him to grab onto without it slipping out from under his fingers, the tunnel narrowing as we went. The tunnel grew colder and darker the further we got, the hairs on my arms bristled. _Darkness._ That gave me an idea. I mapped out where Grover would be flying past in my head and yelled.

"Get ready!" I dove into the shadow of a stalagmite. I felt the cold rush and eerie sounds of shadow travel, then I came out a few feet in front of Grover's path and I leaped at him. I tackled him sideways and made a desperate swipe at the wings of the shoes. I managed to cut off one wing and tear into the fabric of the shoe slightly without harming Grover. We slowed down a bit but our momentum kept us going as I clutched his arm, the remaining wings still beating away. My added weight slowed them a little but then we hit a steeper slope and that went out the window.

Ahead the tunnel widened into a huge dark cavern. In its center was a chasm the size of a city block. _Tartarus. _I managed to swing the arm holding my sword around and swat at the shoe I had loosened and that was able to knock it off his hoof but my arm was quickly swung around again, trying to drag behind me. I tried to dig my toes into the ground but we just kept going.

I heard Percy and Annabeth have a brief "conversation", if yelling counted. I was still desperately trying to drag my feet into the ground as I held on tight to slow us him down but the slope was against it.

Grover managed to grab onto a big rock as we hit it and use it as an anchor. We were so close to the edge of the pit now. When Grover jolted to a stop with the rock his arm was torn from my grasp and I ended up tumbling further down the slope, rolling closer and closer to the edge.

I realized in a panic between my glimpses of the pit as I rolled that at this speed I would end up going straight into the chasm. I made a split second decision and let go of my regular sword and grasped my necklace. The instant my knife formed I struck it into the ground with all my might and felt the sharp tug that accompanied this power use along with a jolt in my shoulder. I felt myself slam into the quickly erected barrier of earth that caused my abrupt stop, loose gravel showering me. I heard the clank as my sword fell into the pit, hitting rocks or something on the way down, lost forever.

I lay there, panting for a moment, just looking at how close I had been to falling into that pit. I was sure by the ache in my shoulder and soreness in my back that I would have some nice bruises from this escapade. Grover's second shoe whizzed past, taking the time to smack my head on its way over the edge-it was just a mere foot away. I realized I was still too close to the edge for comfort and scrambled back up the slope just as Percy ran forward and grabbed my arm, pulling me upright and into him, dragging me further from the pit and over to Annabeth and Grover.

I was gasping for breath at this point. All of this high speed running, the short shadow jump, and the quick wall of earth, just high enough to stop me from rolling over it. Even with the boost I was still tired.

We didn't speak, we all just collapsed, exhausted onto the obsidian gravel. At first I thought Percy was shaking, but then I realized that was just me. He still had me in his grasp, his fingers tight around my arms to make sure I didn't somehow fall into that pit. I leaned back against him, trying to catch my breath and he wrapped his arm around me. Grover and I were a bit scratched up, and I knew I would have some bruises, but nothing too bad. His eyes had gone slit-pupiled, goat style, like they did whenever he was terrified.

I pulled off the sword sheathe still hanging at my side, useless now, knuckles white, the severity of the situation hitting me.

"I don't know how.." Grover panted. "I didn't.."

"I don't know how you did that, but it was usef-" Percy started to say to me, then stopped. "Wait, listen." He shushed. We all quieted down and listened. There was something-a deep whispering in the darkness. Another few seconds and I realized what it was.

"Percy, this place-"

"Shh," He let go of me and stood. The sound was getting louder, the muttering of the voice from the pit, far, far below us. _Kronos._

Grover sat up. "Wh-what's that noise?"

I could tell Annabeth heard it, I could see it in her eyes. "Tartarus. The entrance to Tartarus." She said in shock.

Percy uncapped his sword, Anaklusmos expanding, gleaming in the darkness. The voice faltered for a moment but then it continued its chant. I could make out faint words now, but I couldn't understand them. They sounded much older than ancient Greek. Very, very old.

"Magic," Percy said in realization.

Then I realized what he was trying to do. "We're leaving! NOW!" I stood up as fast as I could, threw away my now useless sword sheathe, and started pulling them to get away from the pit. They snapped out of it and we helped drag Grover to his hooves, starting back up the tunnel. I may not be able to understand those words, but I knew his intent. He had planned on one of us to fall. Percy was moving slower though, like something was weighing him down. The voice grew louder and angrier behind us and we broke into a flat out run, and not a moment too soon.

A blast of wind pulled at our backs, almost like simulating the pit inhaling. For a terrifying moment we lost ground, our feet slipping across the gravel. We struggled forward and finally reached the top of the tunnel where it emptied into Asphodel. Had we been any closer... The wind died and a wail of outrage echoed from deep in the tunnel and I felt a flash of pain in my head, causing me to wince and bring my hand to my temple. Kronos was not happy about us getting away.

"What _was_ that?" Grover panted once we had reached the relative safety of a poplar grove. "One of Hades' pets?" I resisted the urge to snort. That _thing_ was far from a pet. As it was, the three of us shared a look as Grover tried to catch his breath. I knew Annabeth had already begun to piece together what was truly in the pit, but I knew she was too scared to share it.

"Let's keep going." Percy said as he capped his sword and put the pen back in his pocket, then looked to Grover. "Can you walk?"

He swallowed. "Yeah, sure. I never liked those shoes, anyway." He tried to sound brave about the whole thing, but he was trembling as badly as the rest of us.

As we came closer to the familiar black palace my thoughts turned to those shoes and just how. _Those shoes.. Percy was told not to trust the gifts. That must have been what the Nereid meant. _But that didn't seem entirely compete. Then I remembered who they told me gave Percy the shoes in the first place. _Luke._

"Son of a gorgon, intrigante stronzetto, no good little-" I muttered to myself but then Percy heard.

"What did you say?"

"Nothing." I felt my anger grow toward the son of Hermes. He had expected Percy to be the one wearing those shoes during the quest. He had planned on them dragging my little brother into Tartarus, to Kronos. _That backstabbing little.._ So many words to finish that sentence filled my mind but none of them seemed to fit exactly how I was feeling toward that traitor, I was seething with evil thoughts toward that kid. I felt some of the shadows curl around my feet with my growing anger. Once I got back to camp, and I would sure as heck make sure I did for this, that kid would be _done._

There was still that little bit in the back of my mind though that said maybe it was just Kronos who set the shoes up once we got closer to the pit. I had to be one-hundred percent sure that Luke was the traitor before I acted. Either way, had Percy been dragged into the pit, like hell I wasn't going in after him.

I absently noticed the two-story-tall bronze gates we were passing through. The familiar engravings of scenes of death welcomes us, ones that had come to pass, yet to pass, and ones that have even passed in the time I was gone that now made sense. All etched thousands of years ago.

Multicolored mushrooms, poisonous shrubs, and luminous plants that grew without sunlight in my step mother's garden were laid out to our sides along the path. Glittering jewels and the petrified children, satyrs, and centaurs smiling grotesquely. I don't know why she wanted those there, but not my problem.

"The garden of Persephone," Annabeth said, but it sounded distant. "Keep walking." The tart smell of pomegranates wafted into reach. _I should get some seeds in case of an emergency._ We were walking up the steps of the palace, between black columns, through the black marble portico, and into the House of Hades.

I drifted out of my thoughts and back to what was happening now in a snap once I saw the skeletons in military gear guarding the side doorways. It was game time. Things were about to change majorly and I had to be ready. No going back. Now I had to be able to get out of here to warn Chiron, not just about Luke trying to kill us, but about Kronos - a growing darkness. The skeletons were carrying spears, muskets, and assorted military rifles. None of them bothered us but their hollow eye sockets followed us as we walked down the hall, even closer to the big set of doors that lead to the throne room.

I stayed in the back of the group when we came up to the two U.S Marine skeletons guarding the doors, grinning down at us, rocket grenade launchers held across their chests forming a kind of X at the tips.

"You know," Grover mumbled. "I bet Hades doesn't have trouble with door-to-door salesmen."

Percy re-adjusted his backpack strap and said, "Well, guys, I suppose we should.. knock?"

A hot wind blew down the corridor and the doors swung open, guards stepping aside. _Always one for intimidation. Totally related to Zeus._

"I guess that means _entrez-vous." _Annabeth said and she cast me back a nervous look. I nodded to her reassuringly, I had their backs, even if it was their quest.

* * *

Inside, my father was resting on his throne of human bones in his super godly height. He was dressed in black silk robes and a crown of braided gold. He looked just like how I remembered him from all those years ago; albino white skin, shoulder-length jet black hair, radiating power - maybe just a bit extra for that more intimidating feel. The way he sat made him look lithe and graceful, like a dangerous panther. His commanding aura immediately hit everyone in the room, his intense eyes looking down at us. As he looked over the group, his gaze passed over me as if I was just any other demigod, which I found strange. It was almost like how Alecto had acted at Yancy.

"You are brave coming here, Son of Poseidon." He said. I saw Annabeth look between me and my father nervously. "After what you have done to me, very brave indeed. Or perhaps you are simply very foolish." Percy looked like he had grown tired all of a sudden, his eyes drooping. I focused on his energy and felt my father's aura focusing on him and I did my best to try and take the edge off it, but Percy fought it nonetheless and stepped forward.

"Lord and Uncle, I come with two requests." He raised an eyebrow and leaned forward in his throne, his movement making the faces of torment in the sink very visible.

"Only two requests?" Hades said. "Arrogant child. As if you have not already taken enough. Speak, then. It amuses me to not strike you dead yet."

I had my hand ready, prepared between going for my necklace and my bracelet. I saw Percy swallow hard and cast a nervous look back at us, then to Persephone's throne. I don't know if that would be such a great idea if he was hoping for her to be here. He probably thought that from the stories she would calm him, but with me here though, that concept was iffy at best.

Annabeth cleared her throat, her finger prodding Percy in the back.

"Lord Hades," he continued. "Look, sir, there can't be a war among the gods. It would be.. bad."

"Really bad," Grover added helpfully and I resisted the urge to facepalm.

"Return Zeus's master bolt to me," Percy forged on. "Please, sir. Let me carry it to Olympus."

Dad's eyes grew dangerously bright and I crept a little closer to Percy. "You dare keep up this pretense, after what you have done?"

Percy glanced back at us again. This just confirmed my suspicion about the Helm.

"Um.. Uncle. You keep saying 'after what you've done.' What exactly have I done?"

The throne room shook with a tremor so strong, it was without a doubt felt upstairs in L.A. Debris fell from the cavern ceiling, showers of rocks ranging from pebble sized to person sized. Luckily none too close. Doors burst open all along the walls and skeletal warriors marched in, hundreds of them, from time periods all throughout history. They lined the perimeter of the throne room, blocking the exits.

"Lord Hades," I tried but he cut me off with a bellow.

"Do you think I _want_ war, godling?" Percy glanced around the room nervously, taking in all the warriors and I saw Annabeth ready her hand to take out her knife.

"You are the Lord of the Dead," Percy said carefully. "A war would expand your kingdom, right?"

"A typical thing for my brothers to say! Do you think I need more subjects? Do you not see the sprawl of the Asphodel Fields?"

"Well.." Percy started to say but he was cut off.

"Have you any idea how much my kingdom has swollen in the past century alone, how many subdivisions I've had to open? Do you know what happened to the last child of one of my brothers who said a thing like that? He had a meeting with me, send down the easy way. Ideas like that are what have always gotten my children killed!" Annabeth's mouth dropped a bit and I stood there, frozen.

"She would have been the one to end that type of slander, but that fool.." Hades muttered under his breath, shaking his head slightly. "More security ghouls," he continued louder now. "Traffic problems in the judgment pavilion. Double overtime for the staff. I used to be a rich god, Percy Jackson."

"Lord H-" I was cut off from my attempt to stop his anger before he blew someone up.

"I control all the precious metals under the earth. But my expenses!"

"Charon wants a pay raise." Percy blurted. _Idiot._

"_You_ were the thief on the winter solstice," he went on. "Your father thought to keep you his little secret. He directed you into the throne room on Olympus. You took the master bolt _and_ my helmet. Had I not sent my Fury to discover you at Yancy, Poseidon might have succeeded in hiding his scheme to start a war. But you have been forced into the open. You will be exposed as Poseidon's thief, I will have my helmet back!"

"Lord Hades!" I finally yelled, catching his attention. _I swear, sometimes he is like a kid when he gets going._ I stepped in front of Percy and my friends protectively. With his temper at the moment I wouldn't be surprised if he killed them with just his aura. As it was, his head snapped to look at me, eyes wide, probably finally recognizing me, or realizing I was there. It was like snow being pushed away from a window, his vision became sharper and focused in on me.

"Allison," he breathed. He his size down to his original ten-foot-tall appearance and took a half-step forward. "But, you were gone, your soul lost to me."

"Lord Hades,"

"I cursed that murdering son of Zeus to the Fields for all eternity for what he did, but you are here now. How?" I saw my friends eyes grow wide, Percy's face especially going pale.

"Lord Hades, I don't know how, I-"

"Should you not address me properly? You were to be the one to set things right, to stop all of the hatred toward my children. But that fool interfered, and now you are with the enemy? They have turned you against me! I will make them pay for what they have done to you, starting with these godlings right here. Then on to my brothers!" I can see him getting ready to sic his skeletal army on us, I had to put a stop to this.

"Father!" I finally yelled, taking out my original weapons, ready for the inevitable assault. I clutched my sword in one hand, dagger in the other. I heard a gasp from someone behind me.

"Allison, what..." Percy couldn't even finish the question. He tried to put his hand on my shoulder but I stepped away.

"I will take care of him, but you three need to get out of here now and as far away as you can get. Use the pearls!"

"The boy is the thief! He has already come down here to try and threaten me with the master bolt." Hades seethed, pointing to Percy's backpack. Percy's jaw dropped and he quickly set down the bag and opened it. Inside was a two-foot-long metal cylinder, spiked on both ends, humming with pure energy.

"Percy, how-" Annabeth asked, finally speaking.

"I-I don't know. I don't understand. There must be a mistake."

"Ares." I hissed under my breath. _That traitor, working for Kronos?_ "You three, get out of here NOW! Get that to Olympus." I told them and they finally listened as my father told his army to start advancing, closing us in like a pack of hungry dogs, so close to their prey. They took out the three pearls.

"But, Allison, we can't just leave you down here!" Percy said in desperation. I knew he was confused with all this new information, but he still wanted to protect me. I felt a warmth blossom in my stomach.

"Percy, I will be fine. Just go, I will meet up with you later. Take the bolt to Olympus, stop the war. That's top priority." High above us there were the Furies, swooping down. They perched on the back part of my father's throne. Alecto, _Mrs. Dodds,_ grinned at us eagerly and flicked her whip.

"A mistake, demigod?" Hades roared. The skeletons readied their weapons, taking another step forward, some of them chattering their teach in anticipation. "There is no mistake, I know why you have come-I know the _real_ reason you brought the bolt. You came to bargain for _her._" He let lose a ball of gold fire from his palm. It exploded on the steps before us and there was Sally, frozen in a shower of gold, just as she was at the moment when the Minotaur began to squeeze the life from her.

"Yes," My father said with satisfaction. "I took her. I knew, Percy Jackson, that you would come to bargain with me eventually. Return my helmet and my daughter, and perhaps I will let her go. She is not dead, you know. Not yet. But if you displease me, that will change."

I cursed silently, now Percy _really_ wouldn't leave.

"Percy, don't do it. I know what you're thinking, but don't. I will get Sally out of here, I promise. Get your butts out of here and return that stupid bolt. Annabeth, Grover, remember your promise. No matter what, don't come back for us, we will be fine. You need to trust me. Now crush the damned pearls or so help me.. _'And you shall fail to save what matters most, in the end.'_ Percy, the prophecy saw this." I warned, looking him dead in the eye. He swallowed and relented, giving me a small nod.

"Destroy them! Spare my daughter, but kill the rest! Percy Jackson, your skeleton will lead my army out of the Underworld!" My father shouted, extending his hand for his forces to attack. The skeletons rushed forward, bayonets, spears, and swords pointed forward, some staying back to shoot at us. The Furies launched from their perches, Mrs. Dodds eyeing Percy with malice, her whip bursting into flames. I backed up to protect them as they stepped on their pearls.

Mrs. Dodds swooped down and I rolled off a hair-tie and shot it, nailing her in the eye and causing her to spiral down. I saw a burst of green light and felt a gust of sea wind blow past me as the pearl fragments shattered. As I went to chop off a skeleton's arm that was reaching for Annabeth, they were suddenly encased in milky white spheres. The spheres started to float off the throne room floor as I held off the ground forces. Spears and bullets now sparked harmlessly off the pearl bubbles and fell back down as they floated up. One of the spears almost impaled me but I cut down a skeleton to make room to doge.

Father yelled in such a rage that the entire fortress shook. I felt bad for the people above in L.A. My last view of my friends was them looking down at me with sad, torn eyes. Percy was reaching out slightly to me but then his bubble, along with the other two, merged with the cavern ceiling, vanishing from sight.

Once they were gone the skeletons stopped. The Furies landed around me, blocking me from leaving the throne room. Mrs. Dodds/Alecto was giving me the evil eye, the eye I hit twitched. I turned toward my father, not yet sheathing my weapons. I brushed a stray strand of hair from my face and said, "Let me explain."

He balled his fists and let out a long breath, then looked up at me. "How could I have not seen you before?" He asked, then turned to Alecto. "Alecto! By chance, was that 'escaped soul' you tried to kill near Jackson, my daughter?" He had a dangerous look in his eye.

"M-my Lord, I didn't.. I-" She started saying but he cut her off with a withering glare. She shrunk a little under it.

"Look who is in trouble now, _Miss. Dodds._" I mocked, unable to resist the opportunity.

"Off with you three! Leave us!" They took to the air hurriedly, not wanting to face my Father's anger. I lowered my weapons.

My father shrunk down to the size of a normal human and walked up to me.

"Tell me." Was all he said as he rubbed his temples. I put away my weapons and began to tell him all of what happened.

"Father, those were my friends. I don't have a clue as to why I am here now, but Percy's mom, Sally, she took care of me and gave me a home. Really the only memory I have of when I came back was of Sally taking care of me. Heck, I was just like a toddler then, literally. Defenseless. She already had one demigod on her hands, one of the Big Three, but she took me in. She is an amazing, sweet person and if you don't let her go.."

"I see." Was all he said before he held out his hand to Sally and she disappeared. "I will keep her here for the time being. I want my helm returned to me. As for my father.. we will have to stay on high alert. I will post a watch at the cave. If what you say is true, and he really is trying to rise again... Allison, he is dangerous and ruthless, not one to be taken lightly. As for your continued stay up above, I believe after what you told me of your meeting with the Fates, they sent you a message. You are here for a reason, and I do not wish to trifle with fate. Now that I knew where you are I wish for you to keep me informed. I will contact you. "

I nodded. I was not very happy about him keeping Sally here, but it was still better than before.

I paused for a moment, trying to form the words. "My mother and Nick.."

He sighed. "Your friend I have not seen. As for your mother, she passed away in her sleep a number of years ago. It was painless. She was still living at the house you two shared; it is still in tack. I have been keeping it maintained, er- as a tribute. It is open to you, if you wish. After what happened, I went there in person and told your mother. Sandra was understandably distraught. I watched over her through the years, to make sure she was taken care of, as I know you would have wanted."

I didn't know what I was expecting, maybe some part of me still held on to the hope that I would get to see my mother again just like before, but that was unrealistic. Nothing could be like it used to. I knew he had moved on since the thirties, like any other god, but it was still nice to know that my mother wasn't completely alone after I was gone. Ms. Evans would have been there too if she needed someone who understood what happened to talk to, also. Ms. Evans was always a sweet woman, a good friend to my mother.

I would have to go back to my old house some time when the fate of the world didn't depend on the actions of Percy. Maybe I could find a lead to what happened to Nick. Ms. Evans might still be there.

"Thank you, for watching over her and telling her in person. Where is she?" I asked hesitantly.

"Elysium, but Allison, I do not suggest going there, in the least now. I believe there is a situation you would feel the need to be a part of above. While I do not like Jackson, I understand the necessity. I will lend you the energy needed to go and help guide you there, as I see you are not to where you used to be yet."

I nodded, doing my best to pull my mind away from thoughts of my mother. There was still a quest going on. I was not very happy about him not releasing Sally yet, but it was still better than before. Something was happening with my friends though, I had to get to them.

"Thanks you, Father. I will find your helmet, too. But please, be lenient with my friends, they are good people who have helped me a lot. They've helped me move past, what happened." He nodded.

"Also, while I am at it," he said, raising a hand. I felt what was left of the cuts the hellhound back at camp heal over. I peaked under the hem of my shirt to see no bandages and clean skin. He may not be the god of Healing, but with something like a hellhound wound, it was different.

"Do your best. I feel you will play a vital role in events to come. Good luck, and be careful. Please. I do not wish to lose another one of my children again so soon after I got her back." He said a bit awkwardly as I met his eyes. He may be the Lord of the Underworld, and perceived as a cold, heartless god, but he did care for his children. When they were not causing a World War, that is. I nodded. I wanted to see my mother and find out more about Nick, but something was happening to my friends, they needed me.

He put a hand on my shoulder and I felt a rush of energy surge through me. I gave him a half-smile and he squeezed my shoulder a bit, then let go.

"Thank you." And with that I pulled the shadows around me and took off.

* * *

*Dun dun dunnn* Intense? Silly? Badly written? Let me know what your reactions were! Lots of revealing here, and plotting on my part ;)


	26. Chapter 26: Quest's End

**AN 9/5/15: **I am terribly sorry this is a bit late, but it is a monster chapter, reaching only 6 words short of 7k (w/o the AN). I was debating cutting it in half but I decided to keep it a monster chapter. To Life is Anime 22 and Nyuko: I'm glad you have been enjoying it! As for your question, Anime, well, you may not like me. But rest assured, everything is carefully planned. Everything has a reason to my madness. Everything happens at a certain time for a reason that is important to the plot. Hang in there! I do apologize to you all though for this being a bit late, school started this week and a friend needed me yesterday, otherwise I would have made sure it was posted then. It is kinda sad to see this story coming to a close, but it has been a great journey. Don't worry, it isn't done yet though. Big chapter though, I am eager to hear your reactions!

* * *

I appeared in the shadow of a candy shop on the pier. I quickly bent down and looked around to assess the situation. All around me were the sounds of emergency vehicles and smoke was coming from the city. I was scanning the beach further down the pier's path when I froze. There, by the water a ways out, were four figures. Three my size, one a large man. _Ares._ I could recognize that bike and gear anywhere sadly.

Percy was battling him, sword versus sword. He was backed up into the surf, then I saw him shoot up on some water, catapulting over Ares and coming down with a slash. Ares managed to twist in time to block the strike though and literal sparks flashed when their blades clashed. I watched them have a quick exchange of blows as I weaved myself out of the tables and chairs that surrounded me, silently cursing the set up. As Percy tried to get under the god's guard he was kicked back, sent flying back: airborne at least twenty feet.

"Percy!" I screamed, shoving the last chair out of the way and took off. I dove over the pier's railing, gripping onto the floor boards and lowered myself down as far as I could before I dropped. It was painstakingly slowing down my pace. I wouldn't be much help if I broke anything by jumping headlong over it though. I landed in a sand dune and rolled, spitting sand away from my mouth. The shock in my ankles was nothing though when I got up and started running toward the fight.

Percy landed in a dune but he wasn't moving while he was still in my sight. _The gloves are off you little piece of Minotaur merda. _I refrained from yelling as I ran so I didn't alert Ares to my presence and activated my weapons.

I caught Annabeth yell something, pointing at a line of police cars that had assembled along the pier. I caught sight of a man pointing to the scene and another cop scrambling for his patrol car's radio.

Ares had made his way over to Percy and Percy was just barely keeping himself alive. I cursed for landing so far away from the fight. I cursed the sand for slowing me down so much too. If it was solid ground, with this boost of energy, I could probably send a chunk of it at the back of Ares's head- oh how I longed to do that.

I heard Percy cry out and I had a panicked flash of him on the ground, unmoving, Ares standing above him in my head. Luckily I was still close enough to the pier to be able to dive into the shadow of one of the pillars. I ran out of the shadow of Ares's motorcycle, right behind where Annabeth and Grover watched nervously.

Spectators had already gathered and I caught sight of something flying above. A cop was yelling at them through a megaphone to drop their guns, which I assumed was what they saw the swords as, and then Ares bellowed like a little kid in a fit.

"This is a private matter! Be gone!" He had waved his hand in the direction of the police and a wall of red flames swept over their cars. The people hardly had time to dive for cover before the cars exploded. Civilians had already scattered, their screams reaching all the way out here. Ares laughed at Percy, who was holding a cut on his arm. It didn't look too bad, but it had definitely nicked him.

"Hi again! Bye again!" I said as I ran past Annabeth and Grover, panting as I ran past them, chucking down my backpack as I went. They snapped their heads in my direction as I ran in between them but I was already gone.

Percy was managing to get Ares more toward the ocean, his point of power. Between a few nasty swings I ran up behind the pair and just as Ares feinted a swing, catching Percy off guard, my blade clanged off his sword, redirecting the hit. I skidded to a stop in the sand and ducked low, swiping at his legs with my knife as my sword blocked my head. He managed to step back in time to avoid his shins being sliced.

"Well, if it isn't your little friend. Going to hide behind her again, are we Jackson?" He spit into the sand. Behind me Percy was breathing heavily.

"Percy, water, now!"

"Where did you-"

"Damn it Percy, go!" I shoved him toward the water and covered his retreat. Ares must have noticed my new weapons because he sneered.

"Pick up some things in the Underworld, punk?"

"I figured Hades wouldn't notice them missing." I felt a tug in my gut and sand sprayed up into his eyes. I used that time to retreat into the water where Percy was, the waves oddly restrained against me.

"What the heck do you think you're doing, picking a fight with Ares?" I questioned harshly, kicking up some water with my sword to hit his arm and heal him. He spluttered but didn't get very wet.

"He had the Helm of Darkness, he wouldn't have let us go without a fight!"

Ares had recovered from the sand in his face and stalked toward us into the ocean. The ocean seemed to realize I was trying to protect Percy and didn't fight back against me as I went deeper.

Ares lunged and after a glance at each other we each took a side. It was almost like a dance, weaving between strikes, ducking behind each other, one of us striking high as the other low. Percy and I were in sync. I managed to get a hit off of Ares's sword arm, the black metal of my knife slicing his forearm as Percy kept the sword busy. Golden ichor oozed from the cut and fell into the ocean.

Ares roared in anger and kicked me backwards into the water with his combat boot. I landed a number of feet back, even with the water resistance splashing up around me. I couldn't tell which way was up and down as I went below the water, salt water filling my mouth as I gasped to get air. Let me tell you though, getting kicked in the ribs by the god of war? Not fun. I came up, coughing up water just in time to see Percy launch himself up on a wave, soar right over Ares, spin, and land. Ares managed to turn in time to block the feint but he wasn't able to block when Percy stabbed Riptide down into the water.

There was a deafening roar and the sea was literally blown back, leaving a wet circle of sand and a few floundering fish that were having a bad day fifty feet wide. Ichor flowed from the gash on his ankle and Ares had a murderous expression on his ugly face. My cut was like a paper cut compared to that stab. I continued to cough up more sea water. Ares started hobbled over to Percy and was about to raise his sword but something cut him off. It was like someone was blocking out the sun. All light and color faded away, sound going mute. A cold, heavy, and now familiar presence flowed over the beach, slowing time and dropping the temperature. It radiated a feeling that made you feel hopeless, but I was already familiar with it. _Kronos._

The darkness lifted and Ares looked stunned. The wreckage of the police cars burned behind us. The crowds had long flocked to a safer part of the city and Grover and Annabeth stood on the beach in shock. Water flowed back around our feet, Ares's ichor dissipating into the tide.

He lowered his sword.

"You have made an enemy, godling." His burning eyes zeroed in on Percy. "You have sealed your fate. Every time you raise your blade in battle, every time you hope for success, you will feel my curse. Beware, Perseus Jackson. Beware." Then his body began to glow.

"Don't look!" I yelled as Annabeth did the same. I turned my head, shielding my eyes with my arm as Ares revealed his true form. One look and you would be a goner. Then the light faded. I coughed up more sea water, a metallic taste filling my mouth. I saw Percy look to me, then down to his feet. The tide had rolled out to reveal my father's helm. As I made my way to him he picked it up and handed it to me.

"Thanks." I croaked. It radiated Underworld magic in my hand, making a tingly feeling run up my arm. We walked back to Annabeth and Grover.

Before we could reach our destination though, the Furies descended on us, landing in our path. Alecto stepped forward.

"We saw the whole thing," she hissed, sending me a slight glare. _Someone's grumpy._ "So.. it was truly not you?" She asked Percy.

"Told you so." I tossed her the helm. "Return that for me, would you dearie?" I felt the corners of my mouth twitch up as I said that.

She scowled at me. "Wipe your mouth, Cooper." I swiped at my mouth and my hand came back slightly red. _Joy._

"You try being kicked in the ribs by the war god, Alecto." I snapped back.

She sneered but looked back to Percy, running her forked tongue over her lips. "Live well, Percy Jackson. Become a true hero. Because if you do not, if you ever come into my clutches again.."

"Yeah, yeah. Just go already. Don't you have a talk to have with your boss, anyways?"

She cackled, ignoring me. Clearly enjoying the thought of getting the chance to kill Percy. She and her sisters rose into the air and fluttered away like bats into the smoke-filled Los Angeles sky.

"Psychopath." I muttered as she flew away.

* * *

We came up to Annabeth and Grover, my shoes squelching from the water and my whole person dripping wet. They were staring at us in amazement.

"That was so incredibly.." Grover started.

"Terrifying." Filled in Annabeth.

"Cool!" Grover corrected.

"No, that was incredible stupid. Percy, what the hell were you thinking, challenging Ares like that? Do you _want_ to die? Trust me, that is not fun. You might be near the water, but that was near suicide! Now you've made him thoroughly pissed off at you and you can't always be near the ocean, or have friends around. You _literally_ just got out of the Underworld, do you _want_ to go back so quickly? Had we not been there, or that thing not have intervened.." I put away my weapons, thumped him hard on the head, and pulled him into a tight hug, despite my bruised ribs. I thought he would be killed for sure once I saw what was happening- picking a fight with the god of War. Even if said god is an idiot. If I lost him I didn't know what I would do. I released him and pushed him. "Don't you _ever_ do something that idiotic again, you hear me? Or I will bring you back and kill you myself."

"Hey! I already told you he had the helm! _He_ was the one who set us up. He said it himself that I was supposed to die in the Underworld. The prophecy was right, '_You shall go west, and face the god who has turned._' That was Ares."

"I don't care what the prophecy says for this one, Percy. You just started training like what, a month ago? Do you honestly think any of us could have held him long enough for all of us to get away if you got hurt? I will _not_ lose you, Percy. Don't make me have to fight the god of War again, or any other god." What I didn't say was how I would have probably torn myself apart if something happened to him, or that I couldn't lose him too. I was not able to deal with another loss of that magnitude again. I felt Annabeth watching me, knowingly.

"Ally, I appreciate you coming to help, but I don't want you to get hurt either. What was that thing that stopped him though? Did you feel it too?"

Uneasy nods were his reply.

"It must have been the Furies overhead," Grover suggested. _If only, them I can deal with._ The only good thing that came of it was that it stopped Ares from killing Percy, and probably me too, since I would have tried killing him myself if he had. What I didn't like though was what the implications could be. He saved us, but for what reason? Then I caught Percy exchange a look with Annabeth. _He knows._ He reclaimed his backpack, double-checking that the bolt was still in it, and hoisted it over his shoulder. Annabeth offered me my bag and I gladly accepted.

"We have to get to New York," he said. "By tonight."

"That's impossible," Annabeth said. "Unless we-" _No shadow traveling. Too many people, not across the country._

"Fly."_ Or that._

She stared at him. "Fly, like in an airplane, which you were warned never to do lest Zeus strike you out of the sky. While, might I add, carrying a weapon more destructive than a nuclear bomb?"

"Yeah, pretty much exactly that. Come on."

"Joy." I said.

* * *

Sometimes I really love the Mist, even if it could bite you hard sometimes. According to the L.A. news, between clips of the destruction of the earthquake, the explosion at Santa Monica beach had been caused when a crazy kidnapper fired his shotgun at a police car. He ended up hitting a gas main that had ruptured during the earthquake. That man was apparently the same one who had abducted us in New York and brought us on a cross country "Ten-day odyssey of terror." The only thing they really got right was the crazy part.

Poor little Percy wasn't an international criminal after all. How sad, I had my hopes up on that one, criminal by age twelve. That's the way to go. All he was trying to do was get away from his captor on the Greyhound in New Jersey, not bomb it. No child could have caused the explosion at the Arch either - No, no. That was the loony dude with the bad attitude. The concerned waitress in Denver had seen the man threatening his abductees outside her diner, gotten a friend to snap a picture, and sent it into the police. Finally, brave Percy Jackson and Allison Cooper (Percy was ginning by the time we had reached this point in the story while I rolled my eyes), had stolen a gun from their captor in Los Angeles and battled him in a firefight. Police arrived just in time to witness the fight. There were no fatalities, thank goodness. Now Percy Jackson, his sister, and two friends were safely in police custody.

The reporters basically spoon-fed us the entire thing and we just went with it, playing the part of victimized kids for the cameras. Gotta love good old-fashioned "News" drama and customs.

"All I want," Percy said as he choked back tears. "Is to see my loving stepfather again. Every time I saw him on TV, calling me a delinquent punk, I knew... somehow... we would be okay. And I know he would want to reward each and every person in this beautiful city of Los Angeles with a free major appliance from his store. Here's the phone number." I silently high-fived him under the table. The police and reporters were apparently so moved that they passed the hat and raised enough money for tickets on the next plane to New York. I could have used the Lotus card, but that may have raised questions.

In the down-time between the news reports and police, there was a kind of awkward air between us. The boys tried to ask me about what happened down in the Underworld now that there wasn't a crazy war god after us, or the Lord of the Dead, but Annabeth backed me up by saying once we got back to camp where there would be privacy we would talk. Now there was just the flight to stress about.

Takeoff was terrifying, and every nudge of turbulence the plane experienced made my heart hammer in my chest. I spent most of my time, eyes closed, stiff as a board, clutching onto Annabeth's hand and the seat. I wouldn't feel this nervous had I been on here with Nick, but that was impossible right now.

We split up at the taxi stand after we got out of the airport. I wanted to go with Percy to Olympus to make sure he stayed safe, but I would just be more of a liability had I gone. Annabeth, Grover and I parted ways with Percy to take the ride back to camp to inform Chiron about what happened. I still found myself tapping with pent up anxiety about Percy being alone on Olympus, but I tried to keep faith that Poseidon wouldn't let Percy be vaporized.

Upon our arrival back at camp all the campers exploded with questions. Chiron managed to hustle Annabeth and Grover into the Big House before they got too cornered while I shadow-traveled into the Big House living room. They told him where Percy was after a concerned look once they got to the top of the hill. Inside Chiron made us some tea and we settled into the living room. You might think, why is he making tea in the middle of the summer? Chiron was like that at times. I had snuck out while he was in the kitchen making it, excusing myself to use the restroom, and made my way to where he was.

Chiron was putting the water to a boil and pulling out mugs and other tea supplies when I entered. I walked in and leaned against the counter, playing with the bottom of my shirt. Luckily I had gotten to change clothes in the Police station to a pair from earlier in the quest that weren't soaking wet. My shoes still were damp though.

"So, they know." I finally said. Chiron looked at me and I knew he understood exactly what I was talking about.

"I thought as much. Once I saw your note I knew, with the destination of the quest, it would come out. Speaking of which, you are in trouble, Miss. Cooper. You cannot just run off, injured, onto a quest like that, no matter your experience." He said as he poured the water.

"I know.. I knew I just had to go. It was just this feeling, and if you honestly think I would let Percy go on a quest like that under those circumstances, you don't know me well enough by now. As for the injured part, I don't know what you're talking about." I said feigning innocence with a sly smile. I rolled up my sleeve and showed him where all the previous cuts had been, avoiding where the giant bruise had blossomed from where I was kicked. We didn't have any ambrosia or nectar left by that point but I had gotten worse. He rolled closer to take a better look.

"Well then, don't you have some tricks up your sleeve?"

"Ha ha." I said with a smile. A cliché dad type joke coming from him was nothing new. "But yeah, would you be able to sit down with us when Percy gets back, to talk about all of that with them? Annabeth already knows the story, but the boys don't. Also, I need to talk to you about something important later too, in private."

He rolled back to the mugs and placed the tea bags. "Of course I will, Allison. I do not believe that will be much of a problem, but you are still on meal cleanup duty for the next two weeks."

"Alright, fair enough. Thank you though, Chiron. I will see you back in the living room." I pushed off the counter and steered myself back into the living room. Annabeth and Grover were already sitting. Grover was at the end of the couch while Annabeth was next to him. I plopped down next to her and opened my backpack. I pulled out the new jacket I got at the Lotus and leaned back against the pillow, pulling my feet up and propped the jacket over me. It was nice to be in air conditioning, even if it made me feel cold at this point.

After a few minutes and the sound of cleanup in the kitchen, Chiron came back with four cups of tea. Steam curled off the mugs as he passed them out. I held mine and just let it sit in my hands for a bit to cool down.

"So, I believe this would be the time for catching up then, yes?"

Annabeth started the story of the quest off when they were waiting for the bus. I almost laughed aloud at the mention of Grover's mega eating habits and nestled further into the couch. I closed my eyes as I listened to her recall our adventure, adding bits and pieces here and there . Grover acted similarly in that regard too, adding his own narrations. I provided the story of the Arch after Annabeth and Grover had gone onto the elevator. I showed them the Chimera tooth and Chiron gave a little nod of approval at my technique. I didn't say much about what I did, Percy did most of the work anyway. I wouldn't have been able to get those people out had he not been keeping the Chimera busy, and I just finished what he had started.

"You haven't lost your touch much then, have you?" Chiron asked, probably sensing I wasn't saying the whole story.

I shrugged. "I guess not by a lot. Powers maybe a bit but fighting not as much. I guess after so much of it it's kind of hard to forget that kind of thing. Percy did most of the work though, I just helped."

"Allison, about that- how you called Hades 'Father', and then with your other reactions to stuff. You _have_ been to camp before then, haven't you? Yes or no?" Grover asked, giving no room for maybe answers.

"Yes." I sighed.

"I knew it! You are awesome at fighting and stuff. But after what Hades said about that other kid of his brothers, and how you said 'Trust me, that's not fun.' when you mentioned dying to Percy, would I be right if I thought you were that girl from the story I told Percy that day at the dock? As far-fetched as that sounds, but with your weapons and you father, and some other stuff, it kinda points to that." _I really underestimated him._

"Also yes, Grover." Chiron supplied for me. "But I believe that talk would be best to have once Percy arrives."

"Whoa.." Grover said with wide eyes under his breath. Then he must have remembered the ending to that story and looked at me sadly, but in a new light. "Oh, yeah. Of course. But just, wow."

"Let's get back to the story." Annabeth picked up, graciously putting aside that conversation for later. As she retold the story I found myself looking at the mirror on the wall. In the mirror was the slightest view of a large group of campers huddled around each other talking. _Probably gossiping._ I also saw a reflection of myself in the mirror. I looked, to put it lightly, worn. My hair, even with it tied back, was a mess and I had dirt and some dried blood on my face from Ares and the run-in with the pit. I looked paler too, and there was a bit of darkness around my eyes, but I put that off as the different lighting.

When Annabeth told Chiron about the Lotus, and how we got stuck there, I didn't feel like mentioning my experience there. I didn't feel as if I should mention Bianca or Nico, or the run-in with those boneheads. I had nearly fallen asleep by the time Annabeth got up to the fight with Ares.

"And then Allison and Percy started battling Ares together. You should have seen them Chiron, it was like they had fought a million times before together."

He nodded, impressed. "Did either of you get hurt?"

"Not really, Percy got a scratch but the ocean healed it up."

Annabeth scoffed. "Allison, you literally got Spartan Kicked by the god of war/patron god of Sparta."

I shot her a look. "All he did was push me back a bit."

"Yeah, with his combat boot. You were coughing up blood." She deadpanned as she rolled her eyes.

"Details, details. It was mostly sea water anyway."

Chiron sighed, exasperated. "I thought you said you weren't injured."

"No, what I said was that I didn't have the cuts from the hellhound. I never said I was uninjured, technically."

Chiron sighed again. "Did you at least have some ambrosia or nectar?"

"If I said yes, would I be in less trouble?" Annabeth slapped her hand to her face.

"You are just like Percy sometimes." She muttered.

Chiron pulled out something from his pocket and I realized it was a small piece of ambrosia. He tossed it across the table to me and I caught it, popping it in my mouth with a nod.

"Thanks Chiron. _Anyway_, I'm still walking so it's no big deal. Please continue with your captivating story Annabeth." She rolled her eyes against at me but complied. I was really tired, the toll from the quest starting to fully hit. I hadn't been on something like that in ages. There was still a slight buzz, surprisingly, left over from my father's energy, but my mind still felt like it was being dragged down. The warmth of the tea in my system was not helping me stay awake either.

"Chiron, can we take a nap or something while we wait for Percy to get back? We can talk more then, I'm beat." I asked as I set down my empty mug.

"If you want to, you may. You know where the spare room are, feel free to choose one of those. You will sleep better away from prying eyes and ears. I don't believe the couch would be suitable for three, either."

"Thanks, Chiron. Come on guys, let's sleep for a bit, I'm beat." I stood up, stretched slightly as to avoid the bruises, and slung my jacket over my shoulders. I grabbed my backpack and led the way into the hallway and to the back rooms. We branched off into separate spaces and I closed my door. I laid down my items and crawled into bed. I rolled under the warm covers and quickly fell asleep.

I had an odd dream filled with images of a statue of Gabe that had a horrified expression on. I am not ashamed to say it, but I actually found happiness in his terror. Then my dream tuned to flashes of what I could only imagine to be Kronos's rage over his failed plan. He was berating his servant for his errors, then went into saying how he must tie off the loose ends. I didn't like the sound of that.

I found myself back in the cavern that hosted the pit to Tartarus, the memory of almost falling in strongly in the forefront of my mind. I saw the now usual memories from my past, but not all were bad. They were of times when I came back from successful missions or trips, but nothing I hadn't seen before. I felt as if those bad types of memories now didn't have as much of a hold on me now that I had shared with Annabeth. Percy and Grover were on their way to knowing too. It was as if it couldn't harm me anymore, and I would fight back harder for it not to.

* * *

I woke to Annabeth shaking me awake. For a split second I tensed, ready for a fight after being on a quest for so long, only to remember where I was.

"Percy's back, come on!" She told me with excitement in her voice. I felt a wave of relief from knowing that he had made it back from Olympus in one piece. I quickly pushed the covers back and stood. I grabbed my jacket on my way out, slipping it on, and walked with Annabeth to the living room.

Through the entrance to the living room I saw Percy sitting on the couch with a bag at his feet. Chiron must have gotten him some lemonade because he was taking a long drink from a glass of it. Grover was already in the room and sitting on the chair to the side of the couch.

"Percy! You made it, what happened? How did it go? You didn't get hurt, did you?" I briskly walked over to him, crouched - ignoring my ribs, and held him at arm's length as I did a cursory look for any damage. Annabeth took a seat in the center of the couch as Percy began talking.

"Yeah, it went fine. I saw mom, she was back at home. Hades returned her. Gabe though.." His fist clenched and he said the name with more venom than usual. He told us about his last leg of the journey and his visit back home. I was happy my father had returned her but upon hearing what happened with Gabe I felt white hot anger. _How could I not have seen it? I'm so stupid!_ Had I known sooner I would have ended his miserable existence, who knows what else I may not have caught? But what helped put me at more peace was my dream. I remembered his terrified stone face. I knew his fate and I would be sure to have my father set up something extra _special_ for him when that time came. Going down there now and threatening him would only cause repercussions for Sally.

When Percy told us how my uncles reacted once he mentioned Kronos I caught Chiron's eyes. _This is what I needed to talk to you about._ He held up his hand in a slight _'later'_ gesture, and I nodded.

As Percy finished his story I grew slightly restless. Now comes the tough questions. Then, just as I had predicted:

"So, Ally. You said you would explain what happened in the Underworld once we got back to camp. Are you really his daughter, and how long have you known? I feel like I had a dream of you fighting a lot of stuff, it's getting clearer since we left the Lotus. Have you been secretly going on demigod missions or something? Why didn't you tell us? If you knew you were a demigod, then you must have realized I was one too, even before we came to camp." Percy was watching me closely now. "Why didn't you tell me? I thought we told each other everything." He looked almost betrayed.

"Percy, had you known who you were earlier, things would have been much worse. We generally try to let demigods live as long as they can safely without knowing." Chiron said to placate him.

"Percy, I wanted to tell you, I really did. But like Chiron said: It would have been a lot worse. Trust me. Two children of the Big Three attract a lot of attention. I had no weapons to protect us with, I couldn't just tell you. I wanted to let you live as long as you could without knowing. I know I always wished I could have gone longer without knowing. You don't want to come to camp until you have to. I was always looking out, but there were complications and only so much I could do on my own. You wouldn't have had a normal life, I wanted to protect you from all this for as long as I could. Once you learn about this stuff? There's no going back."

"Is that why you carried around that knife you used on Ms. Dodds? Speaking of which, where did that thing go?"

"Lost it on the quest. Anyways, that wasn't much good though because it was mortal steel, but it was better than nothing. It was the best I could get a hold of."

"Why couldn't you have just gotten something from camp? But wait, Grover said he has never seen you around came before we came." He hesitated, as if debating his next question. "Allison, in my dream I saw you- I saw you kill people. Have you really done that, or was that just a dream?"

I had to remind myself to breathe. Over the course of his initial story I had taken my original seat back on the couch so when he said that I found myself retreating further into the cushions, eyes squeezed shut for a moment. "Percy, if I have, do you honestly think I would have taken pleasure in it?"

He stumbled for words. "Well, no, but you didn't answer my question. Were you going around doing jobs for Hades, then? Was that what he meant by the last kid of one of his brothers had been sent down the easy way?"

"Percy-" Annabeth started to say but I cut her off.

"Annabeth, no. I have to be the one to tell him." I looked to Chiron for support and he sent me a reassuring nod. "Percy, I wasn't going on 'missions', nor did I come to camp. There would have been.. complications, if I had come to camp. Do you remember that story Grover told you that day we were at the docks after your first time on the climbing wall?"

Percy thought for a moment. "That story from World War II? About the daughter of Hades on our side? What about- wait, what are you saying?"

"That was me, Percy. My story."

"That was _you? _Whoa whoa whoa, wait. How is that even possible? That was like, at least fifty years ago." He asked, waving his hands as he spoke, as if pausing. I noticed Grover paying rapt attention, clearly wondering the same thing ever since I confirmed his suspicion.

"It's kind of a.. long story. But I was there, in your dream when we were in the truck going to Vegas; the one with the fighting he made you see. Those were past events, but only clips of them. Not the whole story by far. He wanted you to not trust me anymore, he's trying to get you to join him and single you out, Percy."

"Him. You mean Kronos?" A cold chill went through the air and Chiron's eyes flicked to the ground.

"Yeah, him. That last fight you saw.. well, that was what Grover's story was about"

"Oh man.. you mean, that's when, _it_, happened? But that's not right, you're here now. A-alive. I've known you all my life. You couldn't have, you couldn't have died?"

"You know how you and Sally have always wondered how I came to you so 'young' with the scars I have? The one on my arm and my stomach and back? Why I always went to wear a T-Shirt while swimming?"

"Well, yeah. But I always figured that was just, you."

I shook my head. "It's because I don't want people to ask questions. Those were from the last fight. The one on my arm? Sword slash from that 'older demigod' from the story."

"And the other?" He looked almost afraid to ask, and I couldn't blame him.

"What do you think? Try getting a sword rammed through you. Not so great for your health, now is it? That was the one that did it, you know. Those two never healed because those were from the last fight. I am guessing the Fates didn't see the point in leaving more than necessary so it was just those two scars left from the old me." Chiron was very interested in a loose thread in the chair next to him.

"What do you mean by the Fates?" This was news to Annabeth too.

"Do you remember when we saw the Fates coming home from Yancy?" The boys nodded while Annabeth looked like she was going to jump me after this to ask about it. "Did you notice their second knitting project?"

"What second knitting project?"

"Well there as a second one, dark purple. Anyway, what Atropos showed me, it makes me think that they are the reason why I am here - Dad thinks so too."

"But, the story said you did, um, go. Right? That did happen?"

"Yeah."

"What exactly happened though? All the story says is that an older camper was involved."

Chiron met my eyes and gave me a nod. I knew he was telling me that it was up to me to decide if I wanted them to know.

I sighed. "I went out with some other campers to help do a job for the camp. It was basically to take out this monster hoard we had gotten wind of that was heading our way before it put the younger campers at risk. I was among those who went, along with my friend Nick, and his older brother Chester." I scowled as I said the name. It put a sour taste in my mouth even all these years later.

"Was that the boy from the photo you had, Nick? Was he your boyfriend or something?"

I let out a laugh despite the heavy situation. "No, Nick was not my boyfriend. We were best friends. We grew up together, but no, we were not a couple. We found out we were demigods when we were nine and got some help coming to camp. Our mothers were only able to help us so much though. Nick, he was a son of Zeus, so I know what I'm talking about when I say two kids of the Big Three attract a lot of monsters. It is a long way from Colorado to here. We crossed paths with an older brother of his on our way here. He helped us, but he was obsessed with the war. That was Chester. You wanted to know what happened in the last fight?"

Percy and Grover didn't look so sure now, but I continued anyway.

"He thought I was spying for the enemy, Chester - like I would ever help those _things._ You would think that failed mission the year before would have made him think '_Oh hey, if the just barely got back alive like that after being MIA for weeks, she couldn't be on their side. They wouldn't hold one of their own people.' _Well, he was an idiot. After his initial attack on me didn't work, he got me distracted with a monster and got to Nick. He was going to kill Nick. Chester? That was who my father mentioned in the Underworld. I do admit, sending that rock at his head was satisfying, but anyway, after I got Nick away from him, that was what you saw. Kronos didn't show you what happened to me after, just Chester's end. We took each other out, but he was gone instantly, I wasn't. They couldn't heal me, but I was okay with what was happening. I had saved Nick, so I was content. I wasn't much older than we are now- fourteen. What hurt most though was seeing his face as I was going."

I found myself angrily glaring into space, fist clenched. I was angry with myself for letting any of that happen in the first place. I couldn't imagine what Nick must have gone though, having to bring my body back to camp, igniting the pyre, coming back home without me. I still didn't know what happened after that to him. Knowing what I did know now, we were only maybe a year away from the end of the war by that point. Everything was gone after that one damned mission. I couldn't even see my mom or Nick in the Underworld once they were gone because I wasn't there.

I felt a pair of warm arms wrap around my and a hand rub off my cheeks. My shoulders were rigid but I made myself relax and lean into Percy, pulling my arms around him as well. We stayed like that for a while, saying nothing but just being there.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know, but you don't have to be alone anymore." He said from his spot over my shoulder.

* * *

Later, after another round of tea, Percy seemed to realize something.

"Hey, Ally, does this mean that all those games where we pretended to be pirates and swordfight you did on purpose?"

"Maybe? It helped though, didn't it?" I laughed nervously.

"Well then. I see how it is. You were prepping me for all this. You smart little.. well I guess those games came in handy. I'm not completely useless with a sword now, at least. A bit of a jumpstart. Still, that was devious."

"It worked though." I shrugged. "You aren't bad with cannons either you know." I grinned.

"What? Hey, that was an accident! I didn't-"

"Percy, you took out a dracaenae without even knowing it, dude. That's just awesome. It was a killer shot." By now Annabeth and Grover were laughing and Annabeth explained what a dracaenae was between breaths. Even Chiron was smiling at our antics.

"I did _that?_" His face just made me laugh even harder.

* * *

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	27. Chapter 27: The Beginning

**AN 9/12/15: Full closing note at the bottom.**

* * *

I decided to stay in the Big House while Percy, Annabeth, and Grover left so as to not gain unwanted attention; I hadn't been an official member of the quest anyways, and that's how I wanted it. I didn't want any attention to set me apart from anyone else, it is easier to stay under the radar that way. After the mob that surrounded the trio thinned out I slipped off quietly to the sidelines. The three of them all were given laurel wreaths to wear to a big feast that was being prepared in their honor. I silently dreaded the cleanup for that, but I had to do it even if I didn't like it. I had technically snuck out.

I took some food and ate on the Big House porch during the feast to avoid a lot of attention and after we convened onto the bonfire to burn the shrouds made in the quest's honor. Chiron let me start my two weeks cleanup tomorrow for the sake of participating and I had let out a sigh of relief that I wouldn't be cleaning up the mess the campers made. The Ares cabin especially had food scraps littered by their table and not surprisingly a steak knife sticking out of the wood for whatever reason.

The shrouds were polar opposites: Annabeth's was beautiful while Percy's was a joke. The Ares cabin had made sure it was as disrespectful (especially had it been put to use) and stupid as possible.

It wasn't until after we had burned the shrouds and were having s'mores that Luke noticed I was back. He came up to me as I pulled my marshmallow out of the fire and pulled me aside. My hand twitched when he put his hand on my shoulder to get my attention but I made sure to act normally.

He asked me about where I had disappeared to, and there was a slight undertone in his voice that indicated that he probably already knew, but he asked anyways. I told him some lie about trying to track down Sally and Percy sending me an IM once he got back to the city to tell me he found her. It wasn't a complete lie, the rest of the quest group knew to say that too as we had all decided before leaving the Big House. It's not like he was telling me all his secrets either. I had been partially searching for her too, my main objective had just been to keep them alive. I was going to be assigned more chores for sneaking out of camp but I told him Chiron already had that covered. He looked a little miffed about not giving me extra chores, but after a warning not to wander off again he went back to the fire.

Grover was awarded his searcher's license from the Council of Cloven Elders after they held a meeting upon his arrival back to camp. Dionysus's welcome-home speech was very unenthusiastic, given a war had been stopped, but I didn't bother fussing with it. It's not like I could make him start caring about that type of thing, he was just in his own little world. Cleanup wasn't too bad either, if you didn't count the gross bits of condiments left around the Ares table.

I was still residing in the Hermes cabin while Percy was in cabin three, so when he got a letter from Sally it was sent to him first, but it was also addressed to me. I left my crafts time to read it with him, even though I was really into a clay pot I was making. I totally hadn't been subtly using my powers to work the clay better either.

To say I was happy about the letter was an understatement. Sally had gone through with turning Gabe to stone and got rid of him. She even got some money out of it, some weird art collector had bought it. That night I made sure to send a mental message to my father in my offering about Gabe. I knew he had received it from the slight smell of pomegranates and flicker of the fire I got in response. Nobody really noticed but it was just the sign I needed to know he had gotten my message. At the bottom of the letter Sally even included a bit about a new possible school in the city we could go to. I was glad it was in the city, this way we could remain closer, and this time without Gabe in the picture.

One night after the bonfire I snuck into the Big House to wait for Chiron. We needed to talk about what happened on the quest. We ended up staying up late that night talking about it. We both knew that hadn't been the last we would see of Kronos and we were both on edge. After this quest, what Atropos showed me scared me even more. It just proved that that was not the last time Kronos would be involved in something.

I didn't tell him my suspicions about Luke though, something was holding me back. I did tell him that the voice I had heard in my dreams was familiar from someone in camp though. I hadn't wanted Chiron to worry as much, the guy had enough things to worry about as it was, even if I trusted him to act like normal around Luke. I didn't want to risk anything. I had enough of an excuse to watch him, him being my cabin leader, but if Luke was the traitor, he would already be on the lookout. I made sure to pick up a spare knife to replace the steel one I had given to Bianca from the armory shortly after returning also, along with a replacement sword I used around camp.

I tried asking him about Nick but I was met with no set answer. He kept annoyingly avoiding the topic with a wary look on his face. Anytime after that when I tried to ask him he just kept avoiding it.

As the Fourth of July celebration grew closer I found myself eagerly awaiting the show. I hadn't seen the show in years, and with the progressions the Hephaestus cabin would have made in that time, the show would be even more spectacular. I used to love watching it with Nick when we were in camp for the event. It used to be a time when we could just forget about all our worries and just watch the lights in the sky.

I sat with Percy and Annabeth on a picnic blanket by the water on the night of the show. Things had been a bit awkward between Percy and I at times, but we still did our best to make everything seem like normal. Being told the person you grew up with had lived another life was bound to bring up some uneasy moments.

Annabeth had just been explaining the show to Percy when Grover approached us.

"I'm off, I just came to say.. well, you know."

I felt a bit sad about him leaving on his search, I had grown close to my new furry friend ever since we met at Yancy. He was closer to Percy, of course, but I still liked to think of him as a good friend. Heck, he was one of four people that knew the truth about me. Annabeth gave him a hug and I gave him a one-armed one. I also made sure to whisper in his ear: "If you need me, I will be there as fast as I can shadow travel there. I am just an I-M away. Stay safe Grover."

He nodded but I knew he probably wouldn't want a daughter of the Lord of the Dead to help him on his search for the god of the Wild, i.e. living things. Satyrs were supposed to do it on their own really too, but I would still try to help him if he got stuck in a tough situation.

"So where are you going first?" Percy asked.

"It's kind of a secret." Grover said and Percy's face took on a slight red tint. I knew satyrs weren't supposed to disclose stuff like that so I hadn't bothered asking.

"We understand. You got enough tin cans for the trip?" Annabeth asked him, straightening the reed pipes that hung around his neck.

"Yeah."

"Glad you remembered to bring your reed pipes."

"Jeez, Annabeth," he grumbled. "You're like an old mama goat." He wasn't really annoyed though, just teasing. He gripped his walking stick and slung his backpack over his shoulder, looking like a satyr on a mission.

"Our little Grover is growing up." I teased, mock putting my hands over my heart.

"I'm over thirty!" Grover protested and I smiled. There was a pause in the conversation, the only sound coming from the campers voices drifting over to our spot.

"Well, wish me luck."

Annabeth gave him another big hug and he clapped Percy on the shoulder while giving me a smile and nod, then he headed back through the dunes.

Just as he was climbing the closest dune the fireworks started exploding offshore. Images of old stories started filling the darkening sky, even some modern ones.

"Hey, Grover." I heard Percy call as I watched the sky in amazement. The show had gotten ten-times better than when I had last seen it. "Wherever you go-I hope they make good enchiladas."

After a few moments Annabeth said, "We'll see him again."

And I really hoped so too, but there was a bad track record for satyrs in his position coming back alive, if at all.

As July came and went, I felt the tension growing. I was sure something was about to happen, my dreams were reassurance enough. I kept seeing conversations between Kronos and his servant talking about tying off loose ends. The one line of the prophecy, _"You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend."_ \- that still felt incomplete. Ares had never been a friend, so he couldn't have been the one the line spoke of.

On the last night of session this year's bead was announced. At the campfire, the senior counselors awarded the beads. I got a new leather necklace with a pitch black bead that held a sea-green trident at its center.

"The choice was unanimous," Luke announced to the crowd of demigods. "This bead commemorates the first Son of the Sea God at this camp, and the quest he undertook into the darkest part of the Underworld to stop a war!" _Technically not the first, but in this generation yeah. I sure hope a war was stopped though._

The entire camp stood and cheered, even the Ares cabin. Annabeth's siblings guided her to the front so she could share in the applause Percy was receiving. She sent me a meaningful look, almost like _'this is for you too'._ I smiled back and clapped louder. They looked like they were on the top of the world.

The next morning I found a letter beside my pillow from Dionysus that informed us about our choice for the year. He insisted on calling me Alice Copper, but I didn't really care as long as he didn't call me Ally. That was reserved for a select few people.

I spent my time after wakeup packing my stuff. I didn't have much but I still took the time to pack it all away neatly. The campgrounds were mostly empty, everybody still occupied by packing or getting ready for final inspection. I was jumpier than usual, Connor Stoll knocking over a bedside table causing me to actually jump and reach for my knife. For a child of Hermes, he was pretty clumsy at times.

After I finished with myself I helped some of the other kids in the Hermes cabin move their stuff around. I had grown to know a decent number of them, at least by name and general demeanor. Once my stuff was on the porch of the Big House, new celestial bronze sword included just in case for the school year (I wasn't too keen on lugging that around, it just got in the way, and I didn't want the traitor to know I was expecting something), I wandered the camp grounds. A while into it, as I was sitting under a tree at the edge of the cabins area observing, I got a sudden flash of pain in my head. Then a deep voice said _"Go to him."_ I almost mentally retorted that the pain bit wasn't necessary, but then I smelled a faint ocean breeze. _Percy._ Any thoughts of answering flew out of my head as I ran to where I last vaguely remembered seeing Percy; the arena. I passed a boy coming up from the forges. _Beckendorf._ I remembered the name from earlier in the summer.

"Beckendorf! Have you seen Percy anywhere?" I asked his towering figure as I ran up to him.

"Um, I think I saws him and Luke go into the woods. Probably going to kill some last-minute monsters. Why?"

"Thanks!" I ran off in the direction of the woods and I found myself automatically following the trail the creek carved. The ominous feeling kept growing as I leaped over logs and weaved through branches and foliage. _You knew something would happen! It's the last day, if he was going to act it would be now, you stupid person!_ I heard a voice faintly off to my right and I quickly slowed my pace, quieting my steps as to not give away my presence. As I came closer the voices became clearer.

"You're being used, Luke. You and Ares both. Don't listen to Kronos."

"I'm being used?" Luke said, his voice taking a shrill tone. "Look at yourself. What has your dad ever done for you? Kronos will rise. You've only delayed his plans. He will cast the Olympians into Tartarus and drive humanity back into their caves. All except the strongest- the ones who serve him."

I took in the scene within seconds._ Luke. Sword. Scorpion. Percy._ I burst into the clearing.

"Luke! Stop!" Luke's head snapped to me, sending me a mad look, but I forged on. "Do you really think Kronos will be a better ruler than the Olympians? Have you heard what happened in the Golden Age? Humans were mere entertainment, even more-so than with the gods. Don't do this, call off the bug."

"Well, look who it is. Allison Cooper, Unclaimed. I would expect you of all people to understand where I'm coming from." He approached me, his sword-which I now realized was somehow a mix of celestial bronze and steel-in hand casually. I subtly edged my knife out of its hidden sheathe, ready to grab. I might have the element of surprise with the knife hidden. I was glad I hadn't brought my sword, it would have taken it out of the equation the minute he saw it.

"Kronos told me a bit about you, he thinks you can still be an asset to us, but I don't see it. You don't have any powers, you aren't amazing with a sword , you just ran away when the going got tough, making up some lame excuse about finding Percy's mom. He told me you are apparently from the past, done in by a son of Zeus." He had a malicious smirk as he said that and I ground my teeth. "Kronos said you were growing too strong, he saw what could become the future, but you just seem like a little weak Unclaimed kid. Heck, you probably don't even know who your parent could be. No, I would expect you to want to change things too, not just sit around on the sidelines and be forgotten like the rest, to live in the shadow of someone like Percy. I was going to try to get you to join our cause, but you are too close to the enemy, for now."

"Listen here, _kid._" I growled. "Just use your brain and think about it. Kronos is using you. He is no better than the gods. What will you accomplish by getting rid of Percy? You know that will just alert everyone to what you're doing, I'll sure as hell make sure of that. If you think I will join your cause- ever - then you are as blind as Kronos. Did he not inform his loyal servant all about me? Or did he skimp on the details, because you know what happened to the last person in your position? Threatening someone I care about? Oh, you had better wish I was some useless unclaimed kid. The last person, that son of Zeus- you know, the son of the King of the Gods? He died, Luke. Painfully. Do not make the same mistake." I felt the shadows starting to inch toward me but I forced them back. If Luke didn't know that I was a child of Hades then I didn't want to take that advantage away. Apparently Kronos hadn't seen fit to inform him about that little detail, so he didn't need to know about all my powers until necessary.

Luke had the gall to laugh. "Right, well feel free to tell them, let them all know. It will just bring more people to flock to the cause if you do. And from my perspective, _Ally_, you're the kid here." He looked back to Percy. "As for now though, this is goodbye, Percy. A new Golden Age is coming. You won't be a part of it." He made to slash with his sword and I whipped out my knife and launched it at him. It managed to catch him in his shoulder, digging into it and causing him to yell as he disappeared in a ripple of darkness. The scorpion had lunged. Percy uncapped his sword and cut it in half midair, but it was too late. His palm already had a huge welt on it from when he swatted it, oozing and smoking.

"Damn it! Percy, we need to get to Chiron, right now! Come on, we need to go!" I ran to him and gabbed his arm, heart still racing from the run over and the tense situation. Percy reached into the water from the creek and tried to feebly heal himself but this type of venom apparently couldn't be healed with water alone.

"Pit scorpion, sixty seconds..." I heard him mutter.

"Sixty seconds, what do you mean sixty seconds? Is that how long it takes to effect you?" He nodded slightly, his eyes unfocused. _Change of plans._

"Okay, Percy. You are going to be okay. I will get you to the Big House, just hang in there and brace yourself." He nodded vaguely again but I could tell the venom was already tearing violently through his system. I wrapped my arms around him and pooled all my energy together to get us both to the Big House through the shadows. I felt a slight rush and I pulled the shadow of a nearby bush to us and it engulfed us. I felt my energy draining, but not as badly as it had on the night of the Minotaur attack. I focused in on the Big House and we landed on the back porch.

"CHIRON!" I shouted, stumbling from the sudden loss of energy and Percy's now dead weight. He was bad, the venom was strong and he was green, turning grey at this point. I felt his life aura weakening as he slumped even further, passing out entirely. I felt panic start to take over once I felt the jump in his aura.

"CHI-" I started to shout, even louder now.

"Yes, Allison? What-" He asked as he came out the back door and onto the porch but stopped short when he saw the scene.

"Venom, pit scorpion, Kronos, Luke." I rushed out, black spots dancing in my vision and the world feeling like it was spinning. A look of fearful comprehension came over Chiron's face as Annabeth rushed out from the same door.

"Annabeth, take Allison and give her nectar." He then rose from his wheelchair, scooped Percy up from my grasp, and ran off with him to the infirmary.

"Allison, what happened? What's wrong with Percy?" Annabeth asked. I caught myself on the railing, my vision going black for a moment and I felt Annabeth grab my arm to steady me.

"Shadow traveled with Percy, need nectar." I told her out of breath. She helped me into the Big House and laid me down on the couch. My stomach was twisting into knots from the big power use. Annabeth ran to the kitchen and I heard her take out a glass and fill it. I screwed my eyes shut to stop the spinning but I still felt it. Annabeth hurried back into the room. I was barely staying awake when she put the straw into my mouth. I started to drink but had to push it aside to gag for a moment. My stomach hadn't felt like this in ages. I forced myself to take a long drink from the glass though despite my turbulent stomach and I started to feel more alert, the edge being taken off. The world stopped spinning and my vision cleared slowly. After almost half a glass Annabeth pulled it away. I had started getting warm so it was a good idea for her to stop me.

"Better? What happened? Come on, are you able to get up? We need to go to Chiron to see if Percy is okay." I felt immensely tired but I made myself stand. I took a moment to get steadied then nodded to Annabeth.

"Will explain soon." She nodded and we rushed out of the Big House and ran to the infirmary.

We burst inside to see Chiron working on Percy. He was gathering different medicines and herbs as Percy's hand lay in a small contraption, draining the welt on his hand by the look of it.

"Chiron, will he be okay?" I asked as we quickly made our way over to them.

"I believe so, I have stabilized him. Now it is just a matter of expelling the venom from his system." He said as he went to grab something from anther pouch. I sat down on the bed next to Percy's and closed my eyes for a moment. I didn't want to think about the slight awkwardness between Chiron and I either ever since he persisted to avoid my questions.

"Allison, what happened to him?" Annabeth asked nervously, cutting looks between me and Percy.

"We were in the woods, a pit scorpion got him." Was all I said for the time being. I was too busy trying to keep my head up to explain further. Chiron already knew the important stuff.

"Allison, sleep. You've drained yourself." I heard Chiron say. I felt the pull on my mind to sleep but I wanted to stay awake to see if Percy would be okay. His life aura was a bit stronger now, but still weaker than I would like. I was glad I was able to stay awake this long in the first place. It was almost like when my father had lent me energy to travel back up to the beach where Ares was, he uncorked a kind of cap on my energy reserves and powers. Like they had been suppressed.

"Allison, do as Chiron says. I will wake you up if anything changes. Promise." Annabeth told me as she sat down on the end of the bed.

"Fine, but wake me up immediately." I relented and rested my head against the wall. It took only moments to fall asleep.

* * *

"Allison, he's waking up! Get up." I felt Annabeth shaking me. I groggily turned to face her and sat up more, blinking to clear my eyes. We were in a different place now. Somehow, while I was asleep, we moved to a bedroom in the Big House. Annabeth was sitting on the edge of Percy's bed next to him and was holding a glass of nectar. After seeing I was awake her other hand picked up a damp washcloth and went to dab his forehead. Chiron was in his wheelchair at the end of the bed. I absently went to put my knife away, used to having it out by this point if I was woken up, but then I remembered it had left with Luke. I felt my mouth twitch into a smile, I hoped that hurt.

As Percy opened his eyes he took in the scene. "Here we are again."

"You idiot," Annabeth said, but her voice was filled with relief. "If it weren't for Chiron's healing.."

"Now, now," Chiron said from his spot. "Percy's constitution deserves some of the credit. How are you feeling?" Chiron looked slightly drained and a bit paler than usual.

"Like my insides have been frozen, the microwaved."

"Apt, considering that was pit scorpion venom. Now you two must tell us, if you can, exactly what happened." He looked between us.

"Hey, I came late to the party." Was all I said and Percy sent me a look, muttering something about how that was totally not a party. Between sips of nectar he told us up until I came in, then I took it from there, considering he was out of it by the end. Some of the things Percy told us Luke said though were very troubling. Then a thought struck me, this was just the beginning. This whole quest just felt like a kicking off point for worse to come.

"I can't believe that Luke.." Annabeth's voice faltered and her expression turned angry and sad. "Yes, yes I can believe it. May the gods curse him. He was never the same after his quest."

"I suspected that he could have been Kronos's insider ever since the Underworld and the run-in with the pit, but this just confirms it." I said.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Annabeth asked, looking a little miffed.

"Would you have believed me? He planted those shoes on the quest to drag whoever wore them into Tartarus with the bolt once we got close."

"I guess you're right, but I'm still not happy about this."

"This must be reported to Olympus," Chiron murmured. "I will go at once."

"Poseidon already knows, he was the one that told me to find Percy. Either way, Luke won't be doing anything for a bit with that knife I put in his shoulder." I muttered. Annabeth looked at me wide eyed. "Hey! He was trying to kill Percy. I just so happened to have a knife with me, and I have decent aim. He was ticking me off, too."

"It doesn't matter, he will heal himself. I can't just sit here!" Percy said angrily, trying to sit up more.

Chiron shook his head. "No, Percy. The gods-"

"Won't even _talk_ about Kronos." He snapped, and I agreed, but he was not in any condition to run out and hunt Luke down. "Zeus declared the matter closed!"

"Percy, this isn't the time for that. You aren't ready." I told him.

"And you are?"

"Well, I am better suited for it than you right now, frankly."

"Percy, I know this is hard. But you must not rush out for vengeance. As Allison said, you are not ready."

Percy looked ready to protest, but then backed down. "Chiron.. the prophecy from the Oracle.. it was about Kronos, wasn't it? Was I in it? Annabeth, Allison?" This sparked my interest. Chiron had only mentioned that there was a prophecy of some type to me before the quest started. I don't know how something like that could slip my mind, but it did. I made a mental note to ask him about it.

Chiron glanced nervously at the ceiling. "Percy, this is not the place-"

"You've been ordered not to talk to me about it, haven't you?"_ And the plot thickens._

Chiron's eyes were sympathetic yet sad. "You will be a great hero, child. I will do my best to prepare you. But if I'm right about the path ahead of you, both of you.." He added with a glance at me.

Thunder boomed, rattling the windows.

"All right!" Chiron shouted and I jumped. It was unusual for him to shout. "Fine!" He sighed in frustration. "The gods have their reasons, Percy. Knowing too much about your future if never a good thing."

"Chiron, with all due respect, he's right. We can't just sit back and do nothing." I told him.

"We will not sit back," he promised. "But you must be careful. Kronos wants you to come unraveled. He wants your life disrupted, your thoughts clouded with fear and anger. Don't give him what he wants. Train patiently. Your time will come."

"Assuming I live that long." Percy muttered.

"Chiron, he would honestly have to try harder to get me, and I _will_ keep him from getting to Percy."

"Be that as it may," he said as he put a hand on Percy's ankle. "You'll have to trust me. You will live. But first you must decide your path for the coming year. I cannot tell you the right choice.." But I could tell he wanted Percy and I to stay, yet he was refraining himself from outright saying so. Wherever Percy went, I would too. "But you must decide whether to stay at Camp Half-Blood year-round, or return to the mortal world for seventh grade and be a summer camper. Think on that. When I get back from Olympus, you must tell me your decisions. I will be back as soon as I can," Chiron promised. "Argus will watch over you."

He then looked to Annabeth. "Oh, and, my dear.. whenever you're ready, they're here.."

"Who's here?" Percy asked but neither answered. Chiron rolled himself out of the room and out of the Big House. Annabeth was studying the ice in Percy's drink as we sat in silence for a few moments.

"What's wrong?" Percy finally asked.

"Nothing." She set his glass on the table. "I.. just took your advice on something. You.. um.. need anything?"

"Yeah. Help me get up. I want to go outside."

"Percy, that isn't a good idea." But he slid his legs out of bed anyway. I jumped to catch him as did Annabeth on his other side before he could fall. He looked almost ready to throw up.

"I told you." Annabeth said.

"I'm fine." He insisted. He managed a step forward, then another. He was still leaning heavily on us. Argus followed us outside but kept his distance.

By the time we reached the porch Percy's face was beaded with sweat. He looked even more ready to throw up than before, but we made it to the railing. It was dusk now and the camp looked deserted. The cabins were dark and the volleyball put unusually silent. No campers were in sight. The light danced off the surface of the water beyond the strawberry fields and woods.

"What are you going to do?"

"I don't know." He said as I held my tongue. I knew it would be best to stay here and train more, he had just started this after all. But knowing him he would want to be out there with everyone else. He mentioned his hunch about what Chiron's preference was, but he didn't really want that.

"What are you thinking, Ally?" He asked, tuning to me.

"I'm fine with either. I'll just go wherever you go."

Annabeth pursed her lips once he mentioned leaving her alone here, then said quietly, "I'm going home for the year, Percy."

"You mean to your dad's?"

She pointed to the crest of the hill, and next to the tree at the very edge of the camp boarders stood a family. Two little boys, one woman, and a tall man with blonde hair that caught the late light. They were waiting for her, the man holding the backpack Annabeth had gotten at Waterland. _So this is what she meant._

Not long after we got back from the quest Annabeth had come up to me and asked what my take was on giving people second chances. I told her to go with her gut, but I didn't know she was talking about her father.

"I wrote him a letter when we got back," She explained. "Just like you suggested. I told him.. I was sorry. I'd come home for the school year if he still wanted me. He wrote back immediately. We decided.. we'd give it another try."

"That took guts, Annabeth. I'm proud of you." I told her, clapping her on the shoulder as Percy nodded.

She pursed her lips though. "You won't try anything stupid during the school year, will you? At least.. not without sending me an Iris-message? Allison, will you make sure of that?"

I nodded while Percy smiled. "I won't go looking for trouble. I usually don't have to."

"Isn't that the truth." I said under my breath.

"What was that, Ally?" Percy asked.

"Nothing."

Annabeth rolled her eyes, but then her face turned serious. "When I get back next summer, we'll hunt down Luke. We'll ask for a quest, but if we don't get approval, we'll sneak off and do it anyway. Agreed?"

"Sounds like a plan worthy of Athena." Percy said and I smiled. It sounded just like some of the stuff Nick and I used to pull. It still surprises me to this day that Chiron never put us under cabin arrest.

She held out her hand and Percy shook it.

"Take care, Seaweed Brain. Keep your eyes open."

"You too, wise girl."

"Aw, you two are so cute." I teased, earning a whack. Annabeth rolled her eyes again, her face slightly red, but gave me a hug. "Stay safe, will you? Keep him safe too." She said in my ear and passed me a drachma. "Message me sometime." I nodded and she stepped away. We watched her walk up the hill to join her family. She gave her father an awkward hug and looked back at the valley one last time. She touched Thalia's pine tree, then allowed herself to be lead over the hill and into the mortal world.

After a minute or so Percy spoke, half to himself. "The sea does not like to be restrained."

"What?"

"Just something my father said. I think I made my decision. I want to go home." I nodded.

"That's what I thought you would do. I'm already packed up."

He then asked Argus to help me assist him down to his cabin so he could pack. I grabbed my bag from the porch and we were off.

* * *

Sometime later while I laid on his bed as he organized his stuff I had to grin.

"I still can't believe you were bribed by caffeine, dude."

"Shut up."

"The soda wasn't even blue."

I got nailed in the face with a shirt and I smiled even more. Even with all this stuff, Percy was still Percy.

* * *

**Story Closing Note:** First, I want to say sorry for any errors, typos, or things of that nature. It is currently a bit past four in the morning for me as I am posting/writing this. First off I would like to thank you guys for being so awesome and supportive. I won't say names aside from some of you who reviewed recently, but you know who you are, and you truly made this experience so gratifying. To Life is ANIME 22: I am so glad I could provide a story like that for you! The concept to me too is also kinda cool, which is why I wrote about it. But thank you, your comment whenever I look at it always makes me smile. I really appreciate the support. To Paper Kaine: You rock dude, through and through. You have been such a great person to help, read, and bounce some things off of. I can't thank you enough. You were one of the first people to really make me feel like this was so great. Even if I do not mention you by name here, know that I really appreciate what feedback you have given, whether it be a favorite, follow, or review. Now, tying in with Neo gen x's comment-

**Information about the next book:**

I am still writing it, I have had some bouts of writers block, and I do not wish to start posting if I am not confident I can provide weekly updates that are up to standard. Going along with that though, given how there will be some "break" time between Book 1 and Book 2, I have decided to do something to help that wait time, which I think I will continue. I will occasionally post little bits of writing. They will be almost like one-shots, but they tie into the story. It will be like things that are happening with the characters between the books and their adventures. You may be thinking, oh they will be just "fluff" or "filler" things, but I plan on including some plot developments that set the stage for the next book. I do not currently do not know how often I will be posting these, or the time-spans between their postings, but they will come. I don't want to leave you awesome people stranded.

For the second book though, I will say it will be an adventure in its own right, that's for sure. It will deviate more from the canon plot than I was able to do for "A New Life". If you have any questions or comments, or if you are reading this after this is all posted, feel free to send me a message if you have any questions, or things in that nature. I am always up for reading what you guys have to say. This was a bit of a monster-type chapter, reaching 5,888 without the notes.

**_In summary:_** Thank you for being awesome. Getting feedback and posting this has been a great experience, and you guys made it that way. _For one last hurrah I would love to know your thoughts on your experience reading and your overall thoughts on the book so I can improve for the future_. I hope you have a good start of your school year, and until next time: Stay safe and continue being amazing!


	28. Book 2 Release Alert

**4/2/16: **Hello, long time no see! I just wanted to let those of you following this story that Book 2 of my Into the Darkness series is officially out so if you have been waiting for it head on over and you check it out! Book 2 is called "The Journey", and I had a blast writing it. I look forward to your responses and I hope you enjoy it! The posting chain has started and the next quest is underway. For those of you who have been waiting for some deviation then you will enjoy this new story. Thank you for sticking with me and I hope you have an awesome week.


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